Self-aware profile switching on a mobile computing device

A system for switching profiles on mobile computing device, the system comprising:

• a mobile computing device;
• a context determination unit of the mobile computing device that is configured to detect a current context associated with the mobile computing device, the context being external to the mobile computing device and indicating a current state of the mobile computing device in its surrounding environment, wherein the current context includes, at least, social network information for a user of the mobile computing device, wherein the social network information was posted to one or more social networks in association with the user and indicates a current activity or location of the user, wherein the social network information comprises one or more status updates for the user that have been posted to the one or more social networks;
• a location description unit of the mobile computing device that is configured to identify, based on at least the social network information included in the current context, a location description for the mobile computing device, wherein the location description includes a textual description of a current location of the mobile computing device;
• a profile rule unit of the mobile computing device that is configured to:
• automatically generate one or more rules based on i) past user adjustment of one or more settings of the mobile computing device and ii) a past detected context or change in context of the mobile computing device at or around a time when the settings were adjusted, wherein the one or more rules are generated without explicit user direction to define the one or more rules, and determine, based on application of the one or more generated rules to the identified location description and at least the social network information included in the current context, whether to switch the mobile computing device from operating using a current profile to operating using a second profile, wherein the current profile and the second profile each define one or more settings of the mobile computing device;
• and a settings management unit of the mobile computing device that is configured to adjust one or more setting of the mobile computing device based on the second profile in response to determining whether to switch to the second profile.

A computer program product tangibly embodied in a non-transitory machine-readable storage device, the computer program product including instructions that, when executed, cause operations to be performed, the operations comprising:

• automatically generating, by a mobile computing device, one or more rules based on i) past user adjustment of one or more settings of the mobile computing device and ii) a past detected context or change in context of the mobile computing device at or around a time when the settings were adjusted, wherein the one or more rules are generated without explicit user direction to define the one or more rules;
• detecting, by the mobile computing device after generating the rules, a current context associated with the mobile computing device, the context being external to the mobile computing device and indicating a current state of the mobile computing device in its surrounding environment, wherein the current context includes, at least, social network information for a user of the mobile computing device, wherein the social network information was posted to one or more social networks in association with the user and indicates a current activity or location of the user, wherein the social network information comprises one or more status updates for the user that have been posted to the one or more social networks;
• identifying, based on at least the social network information included in the current context, a location description for the mobile computing device, wherein the location description includes a textual description of a current location of the mobile computing device;
• determining, based on application of the one or more generated rules to the identified location description and at least the social network information included in the current context, whether to switch the mobile computing device from operating using a current profile to operating using a second profile, wherein the current profile and the second profile each define one or more settings of the mobile computing device;
• and in response to determining whether to switch to the second profile, adjusting one or more setting of the mobile computing device based on the second profile.