Hypertext

Hypertext is a way to show text on a computer display or other electronic devices. It lets readers quickly jump to related information. These jumps are called hyperlinks and can be activated by a mouse click, a keypress, or a touch on a screen. Hypertext isn’t just for words—it can also include tables, pictures, and other materials linked together.

This idea is a big part of the World Wide Web, where many Web pages are created using a special language called the Hypertext Markup Language. Because of hypertext, we can easily share and find information all around the Internet. It makes learning and exploring new things simple with just a click.

Etymology

The word "hypertext" is a new creation. The prefix "hyper-" is used like in math, meaning extension and generality, like in "hyperspace" or "hypercube." It does not mean something is big or excessive. Instead, it refers to structure.

The English prefix "hyper-" comes from the Greek word "ὑπερ-" and means "over" or "beyond." It shares its roots with the prefix "super-" from Latin. This prefix shows how hypertext moves past the straight line of written text.

The term "hypertext" is often used even when "hypermedia" might be a better fit. In 1992, Ted Nelson, who created both terms in 1965, wrote that while "hypertext" is widely accepted for text that branches and responds, the term "hypermedia"—which includes graphics, movies, sound, and text—is used much less. Instead, people often say "interactive multimedia," which is longer and does not fully capture the idea of extending hypertext.

Types and uses of hypertext

Hypertext documents can be ready to use or change based on what you do, like dynamic web pages. Ready hypertext helps connect information in documents, software applications, or books on CDs. Links in hypertext usually show new information instead of what you were reading. One special feature is StretchText, which lets you show more or less detail. Some systems also support transclusion, where content appears when needed.

Hypertext is very useful for linking and connecting information. The most well-known example of hypertext is the World Wide Web, which was created in late 1990 and made available on the Internet in 1991.

History

Main articles: History of hypertext and Timeline of hypertext technology

See also: National Physical Laboratory (United Kingdom) § Scrapbook

In 1941, Jorge Luis Borges wrote a story that inspired the idea of hypertext.

In 1945, Vannevar Bush wrote about a device called a Memex. This device would store information and let people connect different pieces, an early idea of hypertext.

In 1965, Ted Nelson created the terms 'hypertext' and 'hypermedia'. He worked with Andries van Dam to make a system in 1967 at Brown University. Later, a system let students read and discuss poems online.

Douglas Engelbart showed a system in 1968 that let people connect information in new ways.

In 1982, a system in France let people access information using telephone lines.

In 1989, Tim Berners-Lee came up with the idea for the World Wide Web, changing how we connect and find information online.

Implementations

Besides the already mentioned Project Xanadu, Hypertext Editing System, NLS, HyperCard, and World Wide Web, there are other important early examples of hypertext with different features:

• FRESS – a 1970s multi-user successor to the Hypertext Editing System.
• ZOG – a 1970s hypertext system developed at Carnegie Mellon University.
• Electronic Document System – an early 1980s text and graphic editor for interactive hypertexts.
• Information Presentation Facility – used to display online help in IBM operating systems.
• Intermedia – a mid-1980s program for group web-authoring and information sharing.
• HyperTies - a mid-1980s program used in many projects.
• Texinfo – the GNU help system.
• KMS – a 1980s successor to ZOG.
• NoteCards – a mid-1980s system from Xerox PARC.
• Storyspace – a mid-1980s program for hypertext stories.
• Document Examiner - a hypertext system from 1985.
• Adobe's Portable Document Format – a widely used publication format.
• Amigaguide – released on the Commodore Amiga Workbench in 1990.
• Windows Help – released with Windows 3.0 in 1990.
• Wikis – aim to make up for the lack of editors in Web browsers. Various wiki software have different formatting rules, usually simpler than HTML.
• PaperKiller – a document editor for hypertext.
• XML with the XLink extension – a newer hypertext markup language.

Academic conferences

Every year, there are important meetings where new ideas about hypertext are shared. One of these is the ACM Conference on Hypertext and Social Media. Another group, the Electronic Literature Organization, holds meetings about special stories, poems, and art made with computers. This includes hypertext fiction and electronic literature. Big technology meetings, like those organized by IW3C2, often have talks about hypertext as well. You can find a list of these meetings online.

Hypertext fiction

Hypertext has created a new kind of storytelling. With computers and the internet, writers started using hypertext to write stories in digital form. Two tools, Storyspace and Intermedia, helped writers create these stories in the 1990s. Two early examples are Judy Malloy's Uncle Roger from 1986 and Michael Joyce's afternoon, a story from 1987.

One big advantage of hypertext stories is that they can give readers new ways to experience a story. By using links between different parts, or "nodes," writers can change how readers move through the story. This can make the story feel more like exploring a world rather than just reading in a straight line. Some people think this can make stories harder to follow, but others enjoy seeing many different views of a story.

Hypertext fiction comes in different forms. Axial hypertext follows a straight path from start to finish. Arborescent hypertext branches out like a tree, letting readers choose different endings. Networked hypertext has many connected parts without a set start or end. Layered hypertext has two levels, with text on one and pictures or sounds on the other.