Collectively defining context in a mobile, networked computing environment

Mobile and wireless computers are rapidly becoming popular with the general public. In our research we design and evaluate new types of applications that take advantage of the unique characteristics of these devices in novel ways. One of these applications is Graffiti, a context-aware device designed using ideas from social navigation research. This system allows users to collectively define what's relevant and interesting about a location by posting electronic notes. Users encountered a variety of benefits and problems in using Graffiti primarily related to the reliance of the system on user contributions.