BASAR: a framework for integrating agents in the World Wide Web

At GMD's Human Computer Interaction Research Division, we are working on a system called BASAR (Building Agents Supporting Adaptive Retrieval). BASAR, a Smalltalk-based program that runs on Unix platforms, involves intelligent agents that actively support construction and management of a user's personal information space. Possible agent tasks include supporting navigation and browsing; simplifying information retrieval; sorting, organizing, and indexing user-jobs; and filtering information from large databases. BASAR's interface is based on the concept of indirect management. That is, computer agents support human users in a cooperative process where both agents and users can initiate communication, monitor events, and perform tasks.<
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