In short:
A BOT is a software tool for digging through data. You
give a BOT directions and it bring back answers.
The word is short for robot of course, which is derived
from the Czech word robota meaning work.
On the Web, robots have taken on a new form of life.
Since all Web servers are connected, robot-like software
is the perfect way to perform the methodical searches
needed to find information.
For example, Web search engines send out robots that
crawl from one server to another, compiling the enormous
lists of URLs that are the heart of every search engine.
Shopping bots compile enormous databases of products
sold at online stores.
The term bot has become interchangeable with agent,
to indicate that the software can be sent out on a mission,
usually to find information and report back. Strictly
speaking, an agent is a bot that goes out on a mission.
An example mission is to find the best price for a
particular item of interest. (e.g. price comparision)
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