Hypertextual Ultrastructures: Movement and Containment in Texts and Hypertexts

Hypertextual Ultrastructures:
Movement and Containment in Texts and Hypertexts

This is just a sample. To put it in context, visit Hypertextual Ultrastructures' home page for an abstract, the full Table of Contents, and a link to the full text of my dissertation.

Hypertextual Ultrastructures is a dissertation in the English department, so it is full of words, I promise. It's also crowded with illustrations: although I write in English, I dream in color. Follow the links in this list to see some samples.

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Frequency of MLA-indexed articles on "ink" 1937-2007.
Figure 2 Frequency of MLA-indexed articles on markup languages 1987-2007.
Figure 3 Google News claims about a Voice of America story.
Figure 4 Relating three models of errors introduced as texts change.
Figure 5 Containment error: variable-size text in fixed-size containers.
Figure 6 Containment error: readability changes as user-selected text size changes.
Figure 7 Containment error: extreme increase in text size improves visibility but degrades readability.
Figure 8 Containment error: increased text size eliminates access to navigational links.
Figure 9 Basic layout of Google News, showing multiple layers of containerization.
Figure 10 Containment error: software error message in location intended for story text.
Figure 11 Containment error: guidance to email sender in location intended for story text.
Figure 12 Containment error: caption in location intended for story text.
Figure 13 Containment error: serious text inappropriately combined with humorous image.
Figure 14 Web page warns that going elsewhere creates risk.
Figure 15 Web pages showing errors in representation of special characters.
Figure 16 Hypertext varies when viewed offline (L), online (R), or as plain text.
Figure 17 Invention and publication are at different distances from each other for digital blog (top) and manuscript play (bottom).
Figure 18 WordPress blog using "Pixeled" (top) and "Gear" (bottom) themes.
Figure 19 From a public collection of WordPress themes, the webmaster installs several and activates one.
Figure 20 Conventional Help—About responses identify the software version and a source of support.
Figure 21 Portion of a README file.
Figure 22 Software within its context of supporting documentation.
Figure 23 Spider diagram comparing two versions of a hypothetical hypertext.
Figure 24 For technical documentation, a whirlpool diagram shows multiple possible lines of descent.
Figure 25 Hypertext [1.0] weights "hypertext" and "text" similarly.
Figure 26 Hypertext 2.0 weights "hypertext" most heavily.
Figure 27 Hypertext 3.0 widens the gap between "hypertext" and all other ideas.
Figure 28 Bead diagram tracks changes in structure among three versions.
Figure 29 Bead diagram shows re-structuring of contents of original Chapter 1 in three versions.
Figure 30 HTML source statements and the Web page they define.
Figure 31 Three rows of a table look similar but differ internally.
Figure 32 Ultrastructural differences affect matters other than the appearance of the table.
Figure 33 Parts list for the 3-row table includes 6 images and 7 styles.
Figure 34 Pasting a Web page into a Word page causes loss of sub-surface components.
Figure 35 Properly-formatted iCalendar Web page (top) becomes improperly-formatted electronic mail.
Figure 36 StatCounter data showing use of commercial Web page by academic visitors.
Figure 37 Disrupting illustration with commercial text reduces its attractiveness to non-commercial visitors.
Figure 38 Digital copy reports on its name and location.
Figure 39 Evidence of portable copy, copy submitted to translator, and copy on desktop.
Figure 40 Machine translation of English page to Russian cannot translate words embedded in images.
Figure 41 A Talmud page (L) protects the central text; a wiki page (R) exposes the central text to change.
Figure 42 In a layered collaboration, contributors of broad categories are identified.
Figure 43 An administrator's view of a forum posting includes tools for deleting or altering it.
Figure 44 Six-month history of the English-language Wikipedia page on "namespace."
Figure 45 Collaboration in a wiki page can move the text forward and backward in time.
Figure 46 Database records contain three revisions of a blog posting.
Figure 47 User-selected human language (English) placed in software-defined containers.
Figure 48 A visitor's choice of action (logoff) and language (English) dictates the content of the Web page.
Figure 49 Multiple layers of substitution into placeholders allow human language to be presented with other user-specific data.
Figure 50 Firefox users optionally allow Web pages to use the colors and fonts specified by their designers.
Figure 51 Code in logoff.php calls for externally-controlled components.
Figure 52 A Web page designed for mediation by a desktop computer is unusable on a mobile device.
Figure 53 A properly-prepared Web page can recognize inappropriate use and suggest alternatives.
Figure 54 Successful design for mobile devices brings most-used components to the strongest positions.
Figure 55 File properties identify one photograph as the original and the other as a modification.
Figure 56 HTML (top) formats content for display by a Web browser; PCL (bottom) formats the same content for a printer.
Figure 57 Order in the New York Times digital archive (L) is unlike the print edition (R).
Figure 58 Chicago Tribune's report of lynchings is organized chronologically.
Figure 59 Wells’ report of lynchings categorizes accusations made against lynching victims.
Figure 60 Instructions relate to human handling of a paper form created by this electronic form.

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 List of MLA-indexed articles on "HTML" 1937-2007.
Table 2 Some digital representations of non-digital texts warn users not to expect perfection.
Table 3 A blog's brain, skin, and voice are separately authored and versioned.
Table 4 Numerical comparison of two versions of a hypothetical hypertext.
Table 5 Bead labels match section names in Tables of Contents.
Table 6 Labels of square beads match subsection names in Tables of Contents.
Table 7 Components used in a Web page can exist elsewhere.
Table 8 List of academic visitors to commercial Web page during one 12-hour period.
Table 9 Five models of collaboration: aggregated, centrifugal, centripetal, collective, encapsulated.
Table 10 Four models of collaboration: focused, holistic, inspired, layered.
Table 11 Six models of collaboration: moderated, modular, personalized, structured, threaded, weighted.
Table 12 Granular description of multiple kinds of variability demonstrated in one dynamic Web page.