The Art of Hypertext
Module 4 was a dense and rich in information. Perhaps for me, the most interesting opinions and concepts that were touched upon were that relating to hypertext. I found myself interested in the “birth” of hypertext and researched a little bit about it. What I found was the following:
- Hypertext is text which is considered to be linear and not constrained
- Hypertext is text which contains links to other texts
- The term was coined Ted Nelson around 1965
- HyperMedia (also coined by Ted Nelson) is a term used for hypertext which is not constrained to be text (e.g. it can include graphics, video and sound )
- Hypertext and HyperMedia are concepts, not products
Hypertext can therefore be defined as being a method of storing data through a computer program that allows a user to create and link fields of information at will and to retrieve the data non sequentially (“Hypertext”, 1993). The importance and discussion surrounding hypertext has been at the forefront of the scientific world, as technology and the world wide wed builds at a substantial and drastic rate.
For years, man has attempted to record his knowledge. One must only look at the walls of Ancient Greece and Rome to find markings of important dates and records of information from thousands of years ago. But perhaps for the first time in history, we have the technology and capabilities to store and link data and information we deem relevant. As Bush states: “Science has provided the swiftest communication between individuals; it has provided a record of ideas and has enabled man to manipulate and to make extracts from that record so that knowledge evolves and endures throughout the life of a race rather than that of an individual.” There is no doubt that through the use of technology and hypertext, we are able to categorize information in a way never seen before. I believe the issue arises when we look at the quantity and quality of information available. In our hypertext driven world, sources are endless and information can at times be overwhelming. In my opinion, the ease and prevalence of the worldwide web has led us to feel a false sense of comfort. Gone are the days of libraries being the primary place of research, where one would scroll through books, decades old, and perhaps used readily by others. Now the answer or information necessary is a quick “search” and “click” away. I found the following quote from Bush extremely poignant: “The difficulty seems to be, not so much that we publish unduly in view of the extent and variety of present day interests, but rather that publication has been extended far beyond our present ability to make real use of the record. The summation of human experience is being expanded at a prodigious rate, and the means we use for threading through the consequent maze to the momentarily important item is the same as was used in the days of square-rigged ships.”
Bush, V. (1945). As we may think. The Atlantic Monthly, 176(1), 101-108. Available:http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/194507/bush
“Hypertext,” (1993). In Oxford English dictionary online (2nd ed.). Retrieved from
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/hypertext
Hypertext certainly links to many fascinating topics and areas of investigation. One that I found most interesting was the debate about freedom for the reader and whether it is enhanced or constricted by the existence of hypertext. Bolter (2001) makes the claim that the use of hypertext by the author actually predetermines the associations that a reader might make and thus limits the imagination of the reader. Many of us have probably experienced this phenomenon while reading an article on wikipedia and becoming consumed in the exploration of terms and stories indicated by hypertext. It would be interesting to study the difference in the types of reflections and areas of interest and further exploration that would be arise from the reading of the same text with and without hypertext. Thus while on one hand Bolter admires our ability to organize encyclopedias in as many ways as can be imagined by readers and authors, on the another he contemplates the limitations that hypertext places on the reader. Considering this notion, the power of the authors becomes greater and thus authors using hypertext must be very aware and cautious of the associations in their reader’s mind with the use of hypertext and perhaps provide a reflection on the use of hypertext in their work. Likewise, publications may give readers an option to view and explore the document with and without the author’s hypertext or create from it hypertext of their own. This reflection may also be taken as a criticism to Project Xamadu’s (Nelson, 1991) linkage of ideas which may be arguable from one individual to the next and the association of one reader may be seen as an imposition to another.
Bolter, J. D. (2001) Writing Spaces: Computers, Hypertext and the Remediation of Print. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers: Mahwah, Ner Jersey London.
Nelson, T. H.(1991) Xanalogical Structure, Needed Now More than Ever: Parallel Documnts, Deep Links to Content, Deep Versioning, and Deep Re-Use. Project Xanadu. Retrieved from:
http://cs.brown.edu/memex/ACM_HypertextTestbed/papers/60.html
I was fascinated by the fact that people were imagining hypertext and the things we take for granted today well before they were really possible. Nelson and Bush were truly visionaries. I feel like a broken record but I can’t help but think back to O’Donnell in the first week of the course saying that every time a new for of media appears, people grouse about garbage being disseminated and that an abundance of garbage is materializes. He was also prescient when he said that it is not about access to information that is important but the ability to sift through it and prioritize what one consumes.
I appreciate the convince that the internet affords but I marvel at what people I interact with have time to consume hyper-textually speaking. Between teaching a full load, taking these courses and family obligations, I wish I had their amount of leisure….
Engell J. & O’Donnell J. (1999). From Papyrus to Cyberspace. [Audio File]. Cambridge Forums.