(n.) A program that performs some information gathering or processing task in the background. Typically, an agent is given a very small and well-defined task.
Although the theory behind agents has been around for some time, agents have become more prominent with the growth of the Internet. Many companies now sell software that enables you to configure an agent to search the Internet for certain types of information.
In computer science, there is a school of thought that believes that the human mind essentially consists of thousands or millions of agents all working in parallel. To produce real artificial intelligence, this school holds, we should build computer systems that also contain many agents and systems for arbitrating among the agents' competing results.
AI Lab Robotics Links Extensive collection of links to robotics overviews, journals, research labs, personal home pages, clubs, and commercial robotics and agents companies' home pages.
AgentLink Home page of AgentLink: Europe's ESPRIT-funded Network of Excellence for agent-based computing, a coordinating organization for research and development activities in the area of agent-based computer systems funded by the European Commission.
Knowbot programming This paper reviews researcher's experience in building a prototype system for supporting Knowbot Programs, mobile agents intended for use in widely distributed systems like the Internet, and reviews some of the underlying services provided by the Knowbot Operating System.
UMBC AgentWeb Provides a comprehensive collection of resources for intelligent information agents, intentional agents, software agents, softbots, knowbots, and infobots.
