Survey of Device Identification and Selection in Dynamic Environments

When users need multiple devices or other resources in a dynamic, connected environment the identification and the selection of these devices are crucial factors before the user can engage in the actual task. Of particular interest are cases in which multiple users are working in the same environment because that may induce conflicts regarding device usage. In this paper, we propose a categorization of methods for identification and selection of devices and other resources. Each combination of identification and selection imposes a different user interaction style and different technical requirements. All combinations are put into a matrix, that we use to survey existing industry standards and related academic work. We conclude with a discussion about methods of identification and selection in dynamic environments that are hardly studied and need special interest.