This paper presents an approach based on a user agent to permit a number of users connected to distant machines to access different information sources in order to satisfy their requests. This user agent permits the simplification of the information search from distributed sources by making them transparent to the users. The agent considers the specific needs of each user during the search and responds with reference to their profile. It also permits the processing of one or more information requests by one or more users, as well as concurrent responses to each of them. Moreover, the agent provides its users with a measure of interaction, in order to enhance the quality and quantity of the results obtained. As a result, the agent is endowed with the ability to filter and refine the search, thus improving its service to the users.

The great volume of information available on the Web and other sources, and the lack of tools to facilitate an intelligent selection of pertinent documents, make it difficult to extract the ones of interest to a user. We have therefore created and implemented an intelligent information-filtering assistant based on a multi-agent architecture, to support the user in the search for information. We have chosen a boolean search algorithm and our approach achieves an efficiency comparable to that of other information search engines.

For facilitating information searching from divided heterogeneous sources on a network, a modular approach was proposed, giving rise to a multi-agent system named ISAME. The system aims to offer to the agents representing the users, a simplified access to a dynamic collection of information sources available in electronic format. Thus the services aim to facilitate and optimise the process of information searching. The personalisation of the ISAME system for a user is effected by the intervention of the agents used. These agents realise a series of tasks and functions aimed at providing an information system regarding the different users. This article presents a conceptual model of agent user type from the objective of providing the maximum help and services to a class of users with ISAME. It results in a reduction of the server charge in the ISAME environment, before a certain number of operations and sub-tasks at the request of the users are effected locally.