An edition for iPad is expected in 2011, and an edition for 64-bit Windows will follow shortly.
I see no iPad edition. Also, I would like to invite everyone to read Mark Bernstein's comments here in the voice of the Comic Book Guy from The Simpsons, as suggested to me by @mwsmedia
Worst. E-lit customer service. Ever.
Alongside the experiments created by computer scientists there were non-linear literary experiments that have also been seen as “proto-hypertexts”, and as the starting points of electronic literature—but these were far and few between. Frequently cited examples include Nabokov’s Pale Fire (1962), Saporta’s Composition No. 1 (1963), Cortazar’s Hopscotch (1998) and Pavić’s Dictionary of the Khazars (1988).
By my definition of hypertext, these are not "proto-" at all - they are fully fledged hypertext pieces - but I am coming to realize that perhaps we need to create a working definition for hypertext as well as e-lit. Blorgh.
This paper outlines the development of the hypertext fiction community that developed in the United States of America from the late eighties and onwards.
I keep seeing hypertext referenced in ways that make me uneasy. Hypertext didn't start in the 80's, and while Storyspace may have been central to a community of hypertext authors... I don't know. Hypertext is my jam, and there is so much out there that is not e-lit and that predates it as a genre.
Electronic literature, or e-lit, refers to works with important literary aspects that take advantage of the capabilities and contexts provided by the stand-alone or networked computer. Within the broad category of electronic literature are several forms and threads of practice, some of which are: Hypertext fiction and poetry, on and off the Web Kinetic poetry presented in Flash and using other platforms Computer art installations which ask viewers to read them or otherwise have literary aspects Conversational characters, also known as chatterbots Interactive fiction Novels that take the form of emails, SMS messages, or blogs Poems and stories that are generated by computers, either interactively or based on parameters given at the beginning Collaborative writing projects that allow readers to contribute to the text of a work Literary performances online that develop new ways of writing
I think that this definition - while (as others have noted) a little unclear as to what "important literary elements" are, is a good working definition, but the list that follows only works if the part about taking advantage of computer capabilities or contexts is applied. Several of them also exist separate from E-Lit, and without remembering the earlier distinction, the list seemed far too inclusive of works with non-digital hypertext elements. I think moving the sentence, "The confrontation with technology at the level of creation is what distinguishes electronic literature from, for example, e-books, digitized versions of print works, and other products of print authors “going digital,” further up in the piece would help - perhaps before the list as well.