Hypertext
Hypertext is the term used to describe an electronic text which, in addition to the content it contains, provides further information about other documents and websites on the Internet via cross-references. These cross-references are realized via hyperlinks. This gives the text a net-like structure. The corresponding structures must be written in a markup language (e.g. HTML) in order to be implemented. Modern content management systems make it possible to create a hypertext even without HTML knowledge.
Advantages of hypertext
A hypertext has especially the big advantage that information, which is already available in good quality on the net, does not have to be described again. Thus, the author can save redundant information and limit himself to the essential aspects of his complex topic. If the linked information changes, this is not a problem, because the cross-references between the source and the hypertext automatically keep it up-to-date. Experts believe that the human brain can handle hypertext better than linear texts, because the brain itself has a similar structure. Thus, the use of hypertext can increase the learning effect.
Criticism of hypertext
Many people are not trained to read hypertext after being trained to read linear for a long time. Only since the Internet came to the forefront have users become more and more concerned with using cross-references. The bigger problem, however, is being inundated with too much information. Thus, some users get lost in the hypertext and sometimes even lose sight of the source text while trying to read, process and understand all the additional information. This is referred to as information overload. This can only be counteracted if the author focuses strongly on linking only absolutely necessary information.
Definition of terms
There are also documents in the offline world that follow the hypertext principle. For example, entries in encyclopedias and dictionaries contain countless cross-references to the respective explanations of terms in the book, so that no information has to be written down twice. Index card systems also use this principle. However, such so-called manual hypertexts must still be distinguished from pure hypertext on the Internet. The main difference is that on the Internet the linked information is available immediately and without further ado. In an encyclopedia, one must first laboriously browse and search before the required information can be read.
