1. A method for searching for items via the Internet, comprising: creating, by a system including a processor, an index of items, the items being available via the Internet at information sources, wherein the index of items comprises a plurality of descriptive packets, each of the plurality of descriptive packets comprising: an information source search language; an information source search template; an information source protocol; and information source product hierarchy information in which the items are arranged in a hierarchy according to categories and sub-categories of the items at a respective information source; receiving, by the system, a request to search for a product via the Internet, the request to search including search criteria received with the request, the search criteria being received from an end user device based on user input; transforming, by the system, the request to search into an inquiry suitable to the index of items based on the plurality of descriptive packets; searching, by the system, the index of items using the inquiry to produce a first set of information sources corresponding to a first subset of items related to the inquiry according to the product hierarchy information; accessing, by the system, search methodologies that are associated with the first set of information sources generating, by the system, a modified inquiry for each of the first set of information sources, wherein the modified inquiry is translated according to the information source search language and the information source search template; searching, by the system, each of the first set of information sources according to the modified inquiry for the first subset of items of the first set of information sources via an information source protocol of the first set of information sources and according to the information source product hierarchy information of the information source that match the modified inquiry for each of the first set of information sources; and responding to the request to search for items by providing results from each of the first set of information sources related to the first subset of items.
1. A method for searching for items via the Internet, comprising: creating, by a system including a processor, an index of items, the items being available via the Internet at information sources, wherein the index of items comprises a plurality of descriptive packets, each of the plurality of descriptive packets comprising: an information source search language; an information source search template; an information source protocol; and information source product hierarchy information in which the items are arranged in a hierarchy according to categories and sub-categories of the items at a respective information source; receiving, by the system, a request to search for a product via the Internet, the request to search including search criteria received with the request, the search criteria being received from an end user device based on user input; transforming, by the system, the request to search into an inquiry suitable to the index of items based on the plurality of descriptive packets; searching, by the system, the index of items using the inquiry to produce a first set of information sources corresponding to a first subset of items related to the inquiry according to the product hierarchy information; accessing, by the system, search methodologies that are associated with the first set of information sources generating, by the system, a modified inquiry for each of the first set of information sources, wherein the modified inquiry is translated according to the information source search language and the information source search template; searching, by the system, each of the first set of information sources according to the modified inquiry for the first subset of items of the first set of information sources via an information source protocol of the first set of information sources and according to the information source product hierarchy information of the information source that match the modified inquiry for each of the first set of information sources; and responding to the request to search for items by providing results from each of the first set of information sources related to the first subset of items. 2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the searching of the first subset of items comprises applying the modified inquiry to items at fewer than all of the information sources.