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1988-02-01
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Will the real hypertext please stand up?
========================================
The essence of hypertext is making links between ideas. Sounds sensible, yet
almost all hypertext systems stumble over that simple idea. Here's why.
Conventional approaches to linking put a button on a screen that leads
to another file. That's NOTECARDS, HYPERCARD, and GUIDE. Easy -- what could
go wrong? <FILE24 HYPERTEXT> Consider this:
Unlinked ideas
==============
With HYPERCARD, the links (buttons) on the screen are just overlays, not
links to the text or graphics beneath the button.
For example, if your HYPERCARD screen includes the word "laser printer" with a
button covering the word, then you insert a couple of words of text and guess
what happens? Yep, the text moves and the button doesn't. The links are not
from the idea "laser printer" but from a position on the screen.
In contrast, in our link-building software (HOUDINI) for PC-Hypertext, the
links are to connected ideas. These links stay connected regardless of how
many times the ideas are modified, moved, or changed.
Button construction speed
=========================
Ultimately, if building hypertext is important, the speed of inserting links
between ideas becomes the limiting factor. Users of GUIDE complain of the
time and difficulty of inserting links in that system (one link per minute?).
Again, with HOUDINI, users can make, break, or modify perhaps 20 links per
minute.
Can't merge or divide links
===========================
One of the problems of graphic linking (making links between graphics screens)
is literal linking. With graphics linking, you make each link the same time-
consuming way and you can't merge or divide topics without redoing all the
links.
In HOUDINI, you can merge or split topics with the links between the
ideas remaining correct. In fact, you can move topics or even prioritize
topics while maintaining all link relationships.
Automatic creation of links
===========================
While most hypertext systems build links mechanically, HOUDINI includes
numerous commands that automatically make links between topics -- by key words,
text patterns, common linkages, or identical topic text.
Can't trace links
=================
It is almost impossible to verify the integrity of a conventional
hypertext system without traversing every link combination in the system.
Even printing every screen of the system is of little use because the buttons
or jump points do not display their actual action.
Conclusion
==========
While much is made over the capabilities of hypertext systems to cross link
information, the real essence of building such systems is not in the making of
a single link. Instead, effective hypertext construction centers on how you
rapidly classify and categorize relationships. <FILE28 HIERARCHIES>
In building hypertext systems, both HOUDINI and MaxThink provide powerful ways
to classify and categorize relationships between ideas. These are the tools
that organize the structure of the system so that users can acquire the
knowledge contained therein. <FILE64 TOOLS>
Pushing buttons to run processes (HYPERCARD) may be exciting to some people
(if you are a production engineer). Labeling a graphics-based application
program construction set (mostly batch files attached to icons) as hypertext
is a stroke of genius. <FILE54 THINKING>
But without systems for organizing the structure of nodes and links, most
hypertext systems display no structure and consequently communicate very
little knowledge. While such systems may be useful as platforms for running
various batch files or programs (e.g., HYPERCARD), they miss the point of
hypertext which is the communication of knowledge. <FILE62 STRUCTURE>
Is that important? You answer the question -- Does the world need easier
access to knowledge or icon-based batch-file processing? I think you know
what I think.
REFERENCES: --------------------------------
Computing and philosophy <FILE46>
Neil Larson 1/14/88 FILE74
44 Rincon Rd., Kensington, CA 94707
Copyright MaxThink 1988 -- Call 415-428-0104 for permission to reprint