Mobile information agents for processing under information overload: a position statement

Information in electronic form is proliferating rapidly in a variety of forms. We now have powerful search engines that can return pointers to millions of documents on any subject. How can we tap into this fortune, while avoiding information overload? The productivity and success of an individual in a society inundated with electronic data will be largely determined by timely access to information. This is particularly challenging when the data is unstructured, active, and heterogeneous. It seems unlikely that we could package information in a standardized form for the purposes of extraction and interpretation, because people´s information needs are varied and the production of information is easy. The production of information is such that “manufacturing” facilities can be moved easily at little, or no cost, giving rise to transient data sources. Just as the invention of the railroad (and other means of mass transportation) has made it possible for consumers to obtain products quickly, our vision is to provide ubiquitous, customized, and organized access to all users. To this end, we advocate technologies for systems in which customers can express information needs in flexible ways, and that provide facilities for an intelligent and customized exploration of the Web and other information spaces