Specifying sensible device types to use an application on in the desktop file

[Guido Günther]

Hi,
with Linux 'desktop' environments nowadays running on different form
factors and input methods (desktop pc/laptop, tablet, phone, tv, ...) it
would be useful for desktop shells to know what screen resolutions /
sizes and ways of user input an application supports in order to make a
sensible choice whether it should be displayed in a menu to a user. This
choice can change at runtime (e.g. a tablet or TV gets a bluetooth
keyboard paired or a phone gets a large monitor and keyboard+mouse
connected).

Having that information in the desktop file looks like the natural
place and i can see two possible ways: having applications specify
preferred, minimum and maximum screen size and ways of user input or group
things in categories like

  Adpaptive=phone;desktop;

and then come up with sensible device type definitions. Was there any
previous discussion on this already that i missed in my search?  Or
maybe even some prior art i missed so far? If not i can try to come up
with a proposal.

Cheers,
 -- Guido