Network environments and location of resources therein

A network environment according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the network topology is dynamic, in that each resource, on being introduced to the network, is operative to disclose, to at least part of the network, its location and description and the category of the inter-resource relationship that exists between it and a neighbouring resource.

A system for locating a resource within a network environment, comprising generating a search request, the request specifying a desired resource and a categorical search parameter, and effecting propagation of the search request across the network, the search request only being forwarded between network resources where the resources have an inter-resource relationship corresponding to the categorical search parameter.