Table of Contents
Index
Glossary
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Table of Contents
Index
Glossary

  
General guidelines for links

A module is a document representing a conceptual information unit. Likewise a link is a physical connection that represents different types of relations identified at the conceptual level.

Figure A.2: The source and the target of a link are 1) an entire module or 1) a segment of a module. The relata of the relation expressed in such a link are 1) an entire module or 2) a segment of a module, or 3) an information unit underlying an entire module or 4) an information unit underlying a segment of a module, or 5) an entity addressed in an entire module or 6) in one addressed in a segment of a module

Relations can be identified between so called `relata', where each relatum can be 1) the `real world' entity addressed in an entire module, 3) an entity addressed in part of a module, 2) an information unit underlying an entire module, 3) an information unit underlying a segment of a module, 4) an entire module itself, or 5) a segment of a module. A link expressing a relation can be created between a source and a target, which can be 1) an entire module or 2) a segment of a module. Accordingly, the source (and the target) of a link can 1) coincide with the corresponding relatum, or 2) represent the relatum. The source can also 3) be a part of the relatum, or 4) represent a part of the relatum. The source cannot contain (a representation of) the relatum.

• Identify the organisational relations and scientific discourse relations that are relevant for the readers' insight in the domain in general and their understanding of the module at hand in particular.

• Express these relations in the modular structure in terms of labelled hyperlinks, provided that the relata correspond to different modules, or that they correspond to widely different parts of the same module (in the case that this module is large and complex, and that the relata are far apart). If a relation can be identified between adjacent items in the same module, only make it explicit in the text, not in a link.

• For each relation of a particular type that is made explicit in a link, use the appropriate label to characterise the link. The links are directed and the labels express how the citing source is related to the cited target. To an asymmetric relation, two labels can be associated, expressing the relation in the two directions. For example, to the hierarchical relations the label `Is part of' can be associated, as well as the label `Contains' for the opposite direction of the same relation. The labels for symmetric relations are the same in both directions.

  A link between a source S and a target T is denoted schematically as

  S link type reverse link type T,

  where the `link type' can be a complex characterisation consisting of more than one label.

• If you create the link at the same time as the source module, check if the link is automatically endowed with bibliographic data associated with the source. If you create a new link, anchoring it in a published module as the source, provide the bibliographic data to make the characterisation of the new link complete.

• Characterise each link completely with the set of all labels associated to it and make the links thus characterised explicit in:

  1

  the Map of contents. Present the links to modules outside the article also in the module Lists of references. Specific guidelines for these modules, that are part of the Meta-information, have been given in the previous section

  2

  the `navigation menu' of each module. List in the navigation menu, specifying the characterisation,

  • each link from the module at hand to a target specified by its unique identification;
  • each link to the module at hand from a source specified by its unique identification.

The format of this navigation menu will be specified for the journal in which the article is to be published. The author should have at his disposal software allowing him to automatically generate the navigation menu in the correct format, as well as the map of contents and the lists of references in the Meta-information. We suggest requirements for such authoring tools in section 6.2.2.

3

the text of the source module, if the link plays a role in the scientific discourse (rather than just in the organisation of the modules).

• Create in the text a hyperlink.
• Endow the link explicitly with the complete set of labels associated to the relations expressed in that link. Indicate which relations were the raison d'être for the creation of the link.
• Make explicit the unique identification of the target. A reference to an article as a whole is expressed in a link to its module Meta-information.
• If the readers are unlikely to understand immediately what are the source of the link, its target and its function (i.e. what relations between which objects warranted the creation of the link), also include in the presentation of the link a short phrase summarising these characteristics.

In the text of source module S, the target T is referred to as: [link type: (link type); target: T] and explicit backtracking of that link from the module T is then expressed as [link type: (reverse link type); target: S].

In the following, specific guidelines will be given for the identification of such relations and their representation in links.