"Knowing where the others are" is the underlying topic of my phd. That is why I did this quick brainstorm during the afternoon:
- where are my partners/buddies/lover/relatives/colleagues?
- place: home, work, shop, somebody else's place, third place, in transit or waiting (bus stop)
- position: infrastructure (on a bridge, in a high-rise), absolute (GPS coordinates, latitude/longitude, place's name) or relative (close to a place, a landmark, someone, someone's place)
- location feature
- nature/city
- inside/outside
- underground/in the sky/normal
- reachable or not (through tech like phone)
- time matters! when was X where?
- mobile or not (in the train, in the bus or immobile)
- activity: working/chilling/sleeping/shopping/on holiday/attending an event...
- scale: where is someone? the group? a device? an avatar?
- ...
- how can I know where they are?
- ask him/her/them (through a communication tool)
- ask someone who might know
- location based service
- relying on the partner's schedule (probabilty that he/she is somewhere at a certain time)
- inferring from the partner's habit/behavior/cultural tastes
- social navigation: look at traces/cues left, modified artifacts, notes, smell...
- ...
- why do I need information about his/her/their whereabouts?
- to join the other
- ask him/her a service only available at the other's location ("Bring the bread")
- surveillance (prison, hospital)... privacy issues!
- aretaking (kids...)
- management (a field team like firefighters, the army...) commanded by a coordinator (no located on the field)
- field coordination: division of labor, adjusting one's behavior, schedule negotiation
- inferring other's actions, intents or strategies
- ...
Of course it is a work in progress, then do not hesitate to comment