Web and XML Glossary

Xanadu is an overall paradigm, an ideal and general model for all computer use, based on sideways connections among documents and files. This paradigm is especially concerned with electronic publishing, but also extends to all forms of storing, presenting and working with information. It is a unifying system of order for all information, non-hierarchical and side-linking, including electronic publishing, personal work, organization of files, corporate work and groupware. All data (for instance, paragraphs of a text document) may be connected sideways and out of sequence to other data (for instance, paragraphs of another text document). This requires new forms of storage, and invites new forms of presentation to show these connections. On a small scale, the paradigm means a model of word processing where comments, outlines and other notes may be stored conceptually adjacent to a document, linked to it sideways. On a large scale, the paradigm means a model of publishing where anyone may quote from and publish links to any already-published document, and any reader may follow these links to and from the document.