Kairos: Past, Present and Future(s)

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Kairos Was ...
(Doherty's Thread)

Kairos logo circa 1996.
 
The Plan: "Hypertext Studios"
(Salvo's Story)

What is next? There is much discussion of single-sourcing and XML, as well as "adaptive hypertext," but these are technical specifications and languages rather than genres or practices. However, single-sourcing and adaptive hypertext are also both ways to realize new metaphoric uses of text.

My favorite has been Anthony Rue's articulation of "Cinetext". Two parts of the Cinetext metaphor apply to writing from film, and there is much to use in film criticism in exploring electronic literacies:

  • First, there is the transition from still to moving image which can be imagined as a transition from static to liquid text.
  • Second, the further erosion of the singular author towards collaborative authorship, or at least specialization in authorial roles in the production of large-scale, intensive writing projects.
And everyone gets to play.