Tuple space operations for fine grained system control

According to the present invention, a plurality of new tuple-space operators is provided for enhancing the capability of tuple spaces to provide fine-grained control of presence and location systems. New Deactivate/Activate and Mass Timer Extension operators may be applied simultaneously to large numbers of tuples and anti-tuples, thereby improving system responsiveness. A new Query operator greatly increases the ability of presence and location systems to guarantee that private information in the tuple space remains private.