Converting a textbook to hypertext

ABSTRACT

Traditional documents may be transformed into hypertext by first reflecting the document's logical markup in the hypertext (producing first-order hypertext) and then by adding links not evident in the document markup (producing second-order hypertext). In our transformation of a textbook to hypertext, the textbook is placed in an intermediate form based on a semantic net and is then placed into the four hypertext systems: Emacs-Info, Guide, HyperTies, and Super-Book. The first-order Guide and SuperBook hypertexts reflect a depth-first traversal of the semantic net, and the Emacs-Info and HyperTies hypertexts reflect a breadth-first traversal. The semantic net is augmented manually, and then new traversal programs automatically generate alternate outlines. An index based on work patterns in the textbook is also automatically generated for the second-order hypertext. Our suite of programs has been applied to a published textbook, and the resulting hypertexts are publicly available.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.1 Multimedia Information Systems
          Subjects: Hypertext navigation and maps**

Additional Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.1 MODELS AND PRINCIPLES
  H.3 INFORMATION STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL
  H.4 INFORMATION SYSTEMS APPLICATIONS

  I. Computing Methodologies
  I.7 DOCUMENT AND TEXT PROCESSING
      I.7.2 Document Preparation
          Subjects: Hypertext/hypermedia

General Terms:
Design, Documentation, Human Factors, Theory

Keywords:
document markup, electronic publishing, human-computer interaction, hypermedia models