Web-Based Expert Systems

Convergence of technologies in the Internet and the field of expert systems (ES) offer new ways of sharing and distributing knowledge (Sedbrook, 1998). Power (2000) argues that rapid advances in Internet technologies have opened new opportunities for enhancing traditional decision support systems and expert systems. Internet technology can change the way that an expert system is developed and distributed. For the first time, knowledge on any subject can directly be delivered to users anywhere and anytime through a Web-based ES. Because the main function of an ES is to mimic expertise and distribute expert knowledge to nonexperts, these benefits can be greatly enhanced with the emergence of the Internet. The current focus on networked and Internet-based applications demands new architectures for “intelligent” systems as well as creating new possibilities for research and development in this field (Caldwell, Breton, & Holburn, 2003). This article provides an overview of Web-based expert systems with examples. Benefits and challenges are discussed by comparing Web-based ES with traditional standalone ES from both the development and the application perspectives using Turban and Aronson’s knowledge engineering framework.