This paper deals with access path selection algorithms at an application layer. We focus on the independent property of proxies. If there is a possibility of choosing a proxy between a server and a client, better communication delay would be achieved by using an appropriate proxy. We propose a mobile proxy agent, which measures the communication delay, moves into an adequate host, and then becomes a proxy used exclusively for a client. The mobile proxy agent acts as a disposable personal proxy. Simulations of a wide-area network show that the mobile proxy agents are well adaptable to the environmental changes of the network. (C) 2001 Scripta Technica.