Web-based information retrieval using agent and ontology

Abstract

With notoriously large and ever-increasing number of websites, users face the challenge of searching, filtering and monitoring ever-changing information of astronomical magnitude. This research has engineered a society of agents for: (1) locating desirable number of URLs, (2) browsing multiple websites simultaneously and (3) monitoring changes in websites. Since WWW is being used across many cultures, text documents may use different terms for the same concept. By using ontological relations of words, (i) a query processing agent (QPA) assists users in selecting desired number of URLs and (ii) information filtering agents (IFAs) are used to retrieve information. Additionally, information monitoring agents are used to constantly monitor and report changes in websites. Experimental results demonstrated that the QPA can find appropriate number of URLs and IFAs are successful in filtering relevant information in many instances.