Forms for electronic books

Abstract

The book is proposed as a candidate form for new electronic information systems. The electronic book casts the powerfully expressive new media of computers and video in the accessible forms of the printed book. It is a testbed for developing novel methods of interactive information retrieval and perusal that are as useful and intuitive as those of the printed book. The evolution of the book in a history of technological innovation is examined, and the electronic book is established as a logical and adaptive next stage in that evolution. The influence of media forms on the information they carry, and on the way we think, is also considered. The movie manual, a videodisc-based prototype for an electronic book, is presented in a photo-demonstration. Videodisc production and the design and implementation of an object-oriented software system for editing and viewing the movie manual are described. The final section proposes some directions for further work on the movie manual, and looks at possibilities for forms of future books.