An Agent-Based Framework to Support Adaptive Hypermedia

Abstract

The field of adaptive hypermedia is a little over a decade old. It has a rich history in a range of fields such as artificial intelligence, user modelling, intelligent tutoring systems and hypertext. Early adaptive hypermedia work concentrated on application-led research; developing a range of systems for specific purposes. In 1996, Peter Brusilovsky reviewed the state-of-the-art and proposed a taxonomy of adaptive hypermedia techniques, thereby providing the means to categorise adaptive hypermedia systems. Since then, several practical frameworks for adaptive hypermedia applications have been produced, in addition to formal models for formalising adaptive hypermedia applications. This thesis presents a new framework for adaptive hypermedia systems based on agent technology, a field of research largely ignored within the adaptive community. Conceptually, this framework occupies a middle ground between the formal reference models for adaptive hypermedia and application-specific frameworks. This framework provides the means to implement formal models using variety of architectural approaches. Three novel adaptive hypermedia applications have been developed around this agent-based framework. Each system employs different architectural structures, they model the user with a variety of profiling techniques, and each provides a different set of adaptive features. The diversity of these three systems emphasises the flexibility and functionality of this proposed agent-based framework.

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