A calendar based Internet content pre-caching agent for small computing devices

We described in earlier publications the principles of a system where Internet content would be pre-cached, based on contextual information obtained from a user’s electronic calendar. The model for such a system envisioned a set of cooperating agents, distributed on a user’s desktop and mobile device, which would be responsible for making decisions on the context and preferences of the user, and downloading the relevant internet content through a land-based broadband connection and storing it on the mobile device. This paper presents and discusses established pre-caching techniques and their suitability for use on mobile information access scenarios. It proceeds in describing the implementation details of an alternative approach, a calendar-based pre-caching system and presents the findings of tests that were made with human subjects on such a system.