Snip!t from collection of Alan Dix

<div class="inner-padding"> <div class="col1"> <!-- LIST POST CLUSTER //--> <style> .at15t_email{background-position:0px -4120px} </style> <div class="blogroll"> <!--BLOG POST CONTENT: title, byline, icons & body--> <div class="post_content permalink "> <div style="display: none;">1284572820</div> <div class="filed_under"><img src="http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/article_label_fileunder.gif"> <a href="http://www.engadget.com/topics/cellphones">Cellphones</a>, <a href="http://www.engadget.com/topics/software">Software</a>, <a href="http://mobile.engadget.com/topics/software">Mobile Software</a></div> <h4 class="post_title">Intel testing context-aware API for smartphones and tablet PCs, teams with Fodor on dynamic travel app</h4> <div class="post_info"> <div class="post_byline"> <span class="caption">By <a href="/editor/sean-hollister">Sean Hollister</a> <a href="/editor/sean-hollister/rss.xml"><img src="http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/writer_rss.gif" border="0"></a> posted <span class="post_time">Sep 15th 2010 1:47PM</span></span> </div><!--end post_byline--> <div class="post_content_types"> <div class="post_category"> <div class="post_breakingnews sprite"><a href="/breaking/#latest"><span>Breaking News</span></a></div> </div><!--end post_category--> <div class="post_icon"><a href="http://www.engadget.com/galleries/"><img src="http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/post_icon_photo.gif"></a></div> <div class="clear"></div> </div><!--end post_content_types--> <div class="clear"></div> </div><!--end post_info--> <!--BLOG POST BODY: image, blurb, & readmore link--> <div class="post_body"> <!-- surphace start --><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.engadget.com/2010/09/15/intel-building-a-context-aware-api-for-smartphones-and-tablet-pc/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/09/9-15-10-idf2010059.jpg" alt="" vspace="4" border="0" hspace="4"></a></div> Intel CTO Justin Rattner just described a future where your devices know more about you -- not just "where you are," but "where you're going," to use his words. Intel's working on a context-aware API that uses not only physical smartphone and tablet sensors (like accelerometers and GPS) but also "soft sensors" including social networks and personal preferences <a href="http://www.engadget.com/photos/intels-context-aware-presentation-and-fodor-travel-app-at-idf-2010/#3366276">to infer what you're doing</a> and what you like, and deliver these inferences to a "context engine" that can cater to your tastes. It's presently being tested in an app by travel guide company Fodors <a href="http://www.engadget.com/photos/intels-context-aware-experiments-eyes-on/#3366218">on a Compal MID</a> that dynamically delivers restaurant and tourism suggestions based on these factors, and also in a social cloud service (demoed on a prototype tablet) that can show you what your friends are up to (using <a href="http://www.engadget.com/photos/intels-context-aware-presentation-and-fodor-travel-app-at-idf-2010/#3366297">game-like avatars</a>!) on the go. Rattner told us that the API itself is not quite like the typical experiments out of Intel Labs -- while there aren't presently plans to make the API publicly available, he said the context engine was made to commercial software standards <em>specifically</em> so it could become a real product should the technology pan out. In other words, Intel just might be agreeing to do all the heavy lifting for a new generation of apps. How sweet. </div></div></div></div></div>