Statistics Tool On-Line Help

What is it?
The Statistics Tool allows the user to analyse the behaviour of the agents, either whilst the society is still running, or offline using previously saved agent activity sessions. It operates by collecting copies of inter- agent messages, which are then processed and displayed in one of the several available presentation formats.

When should I use it?
The Statistics Tool provides a means of investigating the behaviour of a multi- agent system. One application may be to learn about how the agents operate, and the type and frequency of the messages exchanged. Alternatively, it can function as a debugging aid, to determine why an agent system is not working as expected.

How do I use it?

Before using the Statistics Tool ensure the list of all known active agents has been obtained from the Agent Name Server. The instructions for this process can be found here.
To make the Visualiser aware of on-going agent tasks it must contact each known agent to request progress updates. To do this, select the Request Messages option from the Online menu. This will bring up a dialog enabling you to choose which agents will be analysed by the Statistics Tool.
With data now being streamed to the Visualiser you may choose which aspect of the agent society to analyse. The supported perspectives can be selected from the Statistics menu.
Once an aspect has been chosen, the format in which it is displayed on screen can be chosen from the View menu.

Available Statistics

Statistic	Explanation
Breakdown of Agent Types	Shows the number of each type of agent known to the Visualiser.
Traffic Volume by Type	Shows the relative frequency of the different types of inter-agent message sent by all known agents.
Traffic Volume by Agent	Shows a histogram of the relative frequency of messages sent by each known agent.
Inter Agent Traffic Volume	Pending
Task Activity Level	Pending
Goal Completion Status	Pending
Agent Efficiency Measure	Pending
Agent Monetary Statement	Pending
Plan/Resources Ratio	Pending
Average Goal Lapse Times	Pending
Messages per Goal	Pending

Available Presentation Formats

Whilst some statistics can only be presented in certain formats, others have a choice of presentations. The available formats can be chosen from the toolbar or the View menu:

Histogram

Pie Chart

Line Graph

XY Cluster Graph

Tabular Chart

Other Menu Options

The activities displayed live by the Report Tool can be saved to a file to be replayed later; this process is described here. Instructions for loading a previously saved session are listed here.
The statistics obtained can be made more specific by ignoring particular received messages. This is achieved by choosing the Filter Messages option from the Options menu, and then choosing which agents or which messages to ignore.
To stop receiving messages from any or all agents, select the Unrequest Messages option from the Online menu.