In the contemporary era, both print and electronic texts are deeply interpenetrated by code. Digital technologies are now so thoroughly integrated with commercial printing processes that print is more properly considered a particular output form of electronic text than an entirely separate medium. Nevertheless, electronic text remains distinct from print in that it literally cannot be accessed until it is performed by properly executed code. The immediacy of code to the text's performance is fundamental to understanding electronic literature, especially to appreciating its specificity as a literary and technical production. Major genres in the canon of electronic literature emerge not only from different ways in which the user experiences them but also from the structure and specificity of the underlying code.
Digital literature is not a devaluation, but an evolution of the word. Like printing in the past, it does not destroy the previous form, but enriches it, creating a hybrid space. The key revolution is in rethinking the text itself, which now includes code, interface, and multimedia as its integral parts. This phenomenon is born at the intersection of art and technology, reflecting the diversity of modern digital culture.