

Hypertext fiction is still being created today using not only Storyspace, but other programs such as Twine. Originally, these stories were often disseminated on discs and later on CD. Literature using hypertext is frequently referred to as hypertext fiction. Storyspace and other similar programs use hypertext to create links within text.
#Storyspace jay david bolter software
They sold the software in 1990 to Eastgate Systems, a small software company that has maintained and updated the code in Storyspace up to the present. The earliest pieces of electronic literature as presently defined were created using Storyspace, software developed by Jay David Bolter and Michael Joyce in the 1980s. These two games are considered to be the first examples of interactive fiction as well as some of the earliest video games. This non-linear format was later mimicked by the text adventure game, Zork, created by a group of MIT students in 1977–79. These choices could lead the reader to the end, or to his or her untimely death. Considered one of the earlier computer adventure games, it possessed a story that had the reader make choices on which way to go. In 1975–76, Will Crowther programmed a text game named Colossal Cave Adventure (also known as Adventure).

Although there were several contenders to the invention of an "electronic book" prior to this, Michael Hart, the founder of the Gutenberg Project, has been accepted as the official inventor of the e-book after creating a digital copy of the Declaration of Independence. 1971 was the year officially accepted as the year of the first e-book. The 1970s were when the term "audiobook" became part of the vernacular as cassette tapes entered the public. In the 1930s, the first "talking book" recordings were made to hold short stories and book chapters. In 1877, spoken word recordings began with the invention of the phonograph. In the 1960s and 1970s, the creation of the personal computer allowed people to begin expanding literature into the electronic realm. This is comparable to the release of the printing press in the 15th century, as people did not consider it a major contributor to literature at first. History Ī gradual transition into the digital world began with new advancements in technology to makes things more efficient and accessible. Scott Rettberg argues that an advantage of a wide definition is its flexibility, which allows it to include new genres as new platforms and modes of literature emerge. The definition of electronic literature is controversial within the field, with strict definitions being criticised for excluding valuable works, and looser definitions being so murky as to be useless. This can include Hypertext fiction, animated poetry (often called kinetic poetry), literary chatbots, computer-generated narratives or poetry, art installations with significant literary aspects, Interactive fiction and literary uses of social media. A definition offered by the Electronic Literature Organization (ELO) states electronic literature "refers to works with an important literary aspect that takes advantage of the capabilities and contexts provided by the stand-alone or networked computer". Katherine Hayles defines electronic literature as "'digital born' (.) and (usually) meant to be read on a computer", clarifying that this does not include e-books and digitised print literature. Aarseth wrote in his book Cybertext: Perspectives on Ergodic Literature that "it is possible to explore, get lost, and discover secret paths in these texts, not metaphorically, but through the topological structures of the textual machinery". Digital literature tends to require a user to traverse through the literature through the digital setting, making the use of the medium part of the literary exchange. Some novels are exclusive to tablets and smartphones for the simple fact that they require a touchscreen. The digital literature world continues to innovate print's conventions all the while challenging the boundaries between digitized literature and electronic literature. This means that these writings cannot be easily printed, or cannot be printed at all, because elements crucial to the text are unable to be carried over onto a printed version. A work of electronic literature can be defined as "a construction whose literary aesthetics emerge from computation", "work that could only exist in the space for which it was developed/written/coded-the digital space". Electronic literature or digital literature is a genre of literature encompassing works created exclusively on and for digital devices, such as computers, tablets, and mobile phones.
