Layering: placing anchors on top of each other | |||||||
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A special case of anchor density
must also be noted: anchors which are layered on top of each other or
which occupy the same screen space. This is not related to link density,
as the anchors may or may not connect to a new space. Secondary and tertiary
menus that overlay content space when triggered, such as Nevada's
Division of Environmental Protection [50] are other common layered
effects. Dropdown menus, such as IDEO's [24]
could also be considered a layered menu.
Both _][ad][Dressed in a Skin C.ode [44] and Firefly [34] use the same space to show meaning changes in a spatial context, as anchors trigger new content to appear in the same screen space. These anchors often comment on each other and their content. Indeed, Firefly's main text consists wholly of layered anchors which trigger the other anchors in the same space. Larsen introduces the work by asking readers to "make their own way through the text by clicking on each line to reveal a different facet of the story. [33] " Pax [46] uses a navigational
space where the anchors (images of men and women) pass each other and
interact, crossing and recrossing paths. This overlaying adds to the strained
three dimensionality which evokes a typical game space. Rosenberg uses word-chord anchors to create an entire composition or symphony in a word-poem (e.g., Diagrams Series 5 [57]). These transparent card/anchors are layered on top of each other, creating an at-first indistinguishable muddle of letters. Mousing patiently over each anchor unpeels one layer at a time, like unfolding a symphonic composition by listening to it in a time sequence. |