Michael Joyce states in his article “Siren Shapes: Exploratory and Constructive Hypertexts” that “ideally, an exploratory hypertext should enable its audience members to view and test alternative organizational structures of their own and, perhaps, compare their own structures of thought with hypertext and traditional ones.”
That statement got my wheels turning. In today’s world we have countless devices and software that enable us to accomplish tasks for pleasure and for business at a greater rate.
As someone who is almost constantly writing, word processors and keyboards are nearly essential to my day to day life. This is not to say that I am completely incapacitated when forced only to use the traditional pen and paper format, just that hypertext formats increase my creative efficiency.
On the other hand, the huge variety of hypertext formats available to the modern audience can also potentially hinder activity. Joyce’s assertion that hypertext should enable people to better organize and contemplate thought runs in extreme opposition to our societal fascination with web sites like facebook, twitter, and tumblr.
The question then becomes, has the overall role of hypertext changed or have we warped its purpose?
The issue could lie in the difference between exploratory and constructive hypertexts. According to Joyce, constructive hypertexts require some sort of visual input whereas exploratory is essentially information exchange. Constructive hypertext then is likely driving sites designed for entertainment while exploratory hypertext is more directed toward creativity. So while one aspect of hypertext is enabling us to live more efficiently the other is providing another level of life’s endless distractions.
After reading things like this article I am often left wondering if life would be better if we had more limited or just specialized technology in our daily lives rather than the wealth of technology that we have today. I read in The Johnsonian last night that Microsoft is nearly finished with Windows 8. Honestly, do we need another OS right now? The technology battle currently raging just continues to escalate rather than die down. When the dust eventually settles it will be interesting to see which type of hypertext wins out in the end, let’s just hope it’s exploratory.
rebeccaayers 