It's time to give you an explanation.

The chunks of text you have been reading so far do not belong to me. The quotations rhythmically appearing on your screen are taken from an essay by Arnold Weinstein on Mark Twain's Puddn'head Wilson.

As you have noticed, there's no way of clicking on it. They come and go without you being able to interact. Why? Because I intended the effect to be as close as possible to the original source --the paper -- where concepts are "given" to you in a linear sequence, in a pre-determined order.

What happened next? I selected a few key words that to me, in spite of their original connotation, are exactly the same terms people use today either to praise or to criticize hypertext.

I then asked myself, "what are we talking about"? Mark Twain's novel or the electronic format? What if we find out that they are the same thing?"

I played with these few words and, without a big effort of imagination, I came out with a perfect definition of hypertext .

"Yes, this novel might be Twain's envisioning of a new medium".