Navigating hypertexts

Hypertext navigation in particular, and Internet navigation in particular, also uses a variety of strategies:

• Direct access to an address (URL: Uniform Resource Locator)
• Clicking on an item in a ``Hot list''
• Browsing -- clicking from one hyperlink to another
• Retracing (backtracking) one's path and jumping, using the history list
• Jumping to a reference or start address (``Home'')
• Search with a search engine
• Structured navigation:
  • Graph traversal: top-down, depth-first, left-right, ...
  • Linear ``leaf'' traversal: next, previous, ...
  • Table of contents isomorphism
  • Index selection

Navigation takes time ...

• Analyse the graph traversal strategies of your browser.
• Analyse the graph traversal strategies incorporated in this document.
• How do they differ?
• What other strategies are there for navigating the web?