Wide area information server

WAIS: Acronym for Wide Area Information Servers. A distributed text
searching system that uses the protocol standard ANS Z39.50 to search index
databases on remote computers.

Note 1: WAIS libraries are most often found on the Internet.

Note 2: WAIS allows users to discover and access information resources on
the network without regard to their physical location.

Note 3: WAIS software uses the client-server model.

Source: from Federal Standard 1037C