The integration of Bluetooth service discovery protocol (SDP), and GPRS internet connectivity into phones provides a simple yet powerful infrastructure for accessing services in nomadic environments. In this paper, we discuss the design and implementation of SDIPP, a protocol for provisioning services on Smart Phones. Although several service discovery protocols have been proposed earlier, such as SLP, Jini, UPnP, Salutation, they all have their own infrastructure requirements and target audiences. Bluetooth SDP is an on-the-fly service discovery protocol. However, it is not nearly as powerful as its counterparts. SDIPP works by augmenting Bluetooth SDP with web access and personalization. Payment of services has been overlooked in the protocols proposed earlier. SDIPP provides a novel protocol for anonymous payment, based on the idea of Millicent scrips. We have implemented a few services to illustrate our protocol. We report on our experiences and experimental results. In particular, we analyze and provide an application level solution to the Bluetooth inquiry clash problem that was discovered in the process. 1

Recent advances in wireless technology allow Javaenabled devices, such as Smart Phones and PDAs, to create mobile ad hoc networks, over which distributed applications can be executed. Although Java shields the programmers from the heterogeneity of the hardware platforms, a common middleware architecture is needed to support a cooperative execution environment in these networks. In this paper, we present a portable runtime system for Smart Messages (SMs), a middleware architecture based on execution migration, that we designed and implemented on top of an unmodified Java virtual machine. To facilitate portability, we have designed a lightweight migration mechanism based on Java bytecode instrumentation. This mechanism is suitable for mobile ad hoc networks where limited bandwidth and mobility impose constraints on the amount of data transferred. The experimental results for applications executed over wireless networks of HP iPAQs demonstrate the feasibility of our portable runtime system.

Abstract. The latest mobile phones are offering more multimedia features, better communication capabilities (Bluetooth, GPRS, 3G) and are far more easily programmable (extensible) than ever before. So far, the “killer apps ” to exploit these new capabilities have been presented in the form of MMS (Multimedia Messaging), video conferencing and multimedia-on-demand services. We deem that a new promising application domain for the latest Smart Phones is their use as intermediaries between us and our surrounding environment. Thus, our mobiles will behave as personal butlers who assist us in our daily tasks, taking advantage of the computational services provided at our working or living environments. For this to happen, a key element is to add senses to our mobiles: capability to see (camera), hear (michrophone), notice (Bluetooth) the objects and devices offering computational services. In this paper, we present a solution to this issue, the MobileSense system. We illustrate its use in two scenarios: (1) making mobiles more accessible to people with disabilities and (2) enabling the mobiles as guiding devices within a museum.

In this paper, we exemplify outdoor distributed computing and point out the key challenges. We present Split Smart Messages, a lightweight, portable, network failure resilient and relatively secure middleware that enables a large subset of outdoor distributed computing applications. We also present a Service Discovery, Interaction and Payment Protocol (SDIPP) tailored for mobile phones. We evaluate our middleware and protocol on Sony Ericsson P900 phones and present experimental results.

Pervasive computing is centered around the idea of provisioning computing services to the user anywhere anytime. If realized, pervasive computing can have a significant impact on our daily lives, ranging from the the way we dress to the way we work and travel. Two key hurdles prohibit the widescale adoption of pervasive computing. First, human cognitive bandwidth is a limited resource; the burden of interacting with pervasive computing applications may outweigh the functionality obtained. Second, pervasive computing applications often assume a smart environment which does not exist today; dependency on a ubiquitous computing infrastructure hampers deployment. In this dissertation, we propose location-aware personal computing as a way of getting close to the pervasive computing vision with minimal overhead. Central to locationaware personal computing is the use of smart phones and location information. Smart phones personify a ubiquitous personal device that can execute client frontends, and connect wirelessly to backend services. Location information serves as a proxy for the user. Smart phones and location information can minimize both user involvement and

Traditional computer applications understand mouse and keyboard input for controlling the behavior of the system. Depending on the goal, task and situation of the user, other input devices can be more appropriate to meet the user’s personal attributes. To demonstrate the value of enabling the user to select an input device according to personal preferences, this work combines a device independent control mechanism with a game application. The paper illustrates seven lessons learned from observing users in playing the game with six devices that feature different modalities.

Mobility is more and more mediated, supported and transformed by technological artefacts and infrastructures. Especially technologies labelled as mobile, pervasive, ubiquitous or nomadic, show an interesting shift in the shaping of sociotechnical environments and mediated interaction. Starting from some recent contributions on mobile and ubiquitous computing, the paper attempts to draw connections between discourses and practices related to the technological mediation of mobility. The assumption is that discourses circulating in different public arenas shape core meanings attributed to technologies, beliefs about them and also directions of development for technological artefacts. The discursive practices examined concern mobility-centred theories of globalization (academic discourse), the relationship between the media and mobility (mass-media discourse), and the designers ’ discourse, drawn from three settings of design and development in mobile/ubiquitous computing. As a result, the concept of ubiquitous interaction is presented as emergent pattern of mobile communication and theoretical framework to propose questions for future research, considering how mobility and its opposite (immobility) can bring the emergence of mobile techno-elites entitled to travel both physically and virtually.

Abstract. Signature verification for handheld devices (e.g. smartphones, PDAs, etc.) as an authentication method is studied. Signature can be used to authenticate users in mobile networks for secure transactions. The challenges of signature verification on mobile devices are addressed and analyzed and the architecture for a verification platform is outlined. We propose a verification system adapted to handheld devices and study its performance. Results are given for the scenarios of casual and skilled impostors using a subcorpus of the BIOSECURE multimodal biometric database.