And on-line archives of newspapers, magazines and reference works give readers access to mountains of raw data that completes the story. Mountains of raw data, of course, are only helpful if the interactive author includes techniques for searchability , one of the most powerful editorial features of the web. Link a comprehensive body of information to a strong search engine and the reader can take full control over the text. A good interactive text builds in the search fields and query features that will help a reader study the information from many different perspectives. Transaction , the ability of the interactive text to ask questions of the reader, is by far the most important innovation of new media.
Transaction makes it possible for readers to participate in the creation of the page.
Web-based magazines regularly invite readers to comment on the articles they've just read in a bulletin board format, and it's not uncommon to see a 1,200 word magazine story followed by 2,400 words of reader discussion. After reading the copy in a web catalog, the reader can push a button and order the product instantly. And the latest web plug-ins like ShockWave and Java let writers add video game elements to their narratives. Just as screenwriting is different from magazine reporting, writing and editing for the web has its own limitations and its own unique opportunities. Part I .