ACM Abstract Visual annotation of links is a new technique for adaptive navigation support in adaptive educational hypermedia. This paper explains briefly this technique and reports preliminary experimental results of its evaluation. The results show that adaptive visual annotation is helpful and can reduce user floundering in hyperspace. Users with different goals and knowledge may be interested in different pieces of information presented on a hypermedia page and may use different links for navigation. AH tries to overcome this problem by using knowledge about a particular user, represented in the user model, to adapt the information and links being presented to the given user.
Adaptation can also protect the user from being lost in hyperspace.
Knowing user goals and knowledge, AH systems can support users in their navigation by limiting browsing space, suggesting most relevant links to follow, or providing adaptive comments to visible links. Here we explain briefly this technique and report preliminary experimental results of its evaluation. The results show that adaptive visual annotation is helpful and can reduce user floundering in hyperspace. With adaptive presentation the content of a hypermedia page is generated or assembled from pieces according to the user's class and knowledge state. Generally, qualified users receive more detailed and deep information, while novices receive more additional explanation.