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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Conception et utilisation de documents électroniques : le point de vue de l'utilisateur

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description

This presentation aims at studying the role of para-linguistic organizers used to design technical texts on screen. We are focusing on text setting devices, especially the parenthesis, the footnotes, the more explicit text type statements (such as «Example : » before a text part) and the pop-up windows. Methods of experimental psychology were used in order to analyse written texts and also to study the influence of para-linguistic organizers on the reading process (memorisation and information retrieval). The initial idea is that it is possible to analyse a technical text into units according to the writer's intention of communication (to emphasize or minimise the relative importance of a textual unit for instance). So, the text becomes a set of textual units (TU) based on different intentions of the writer. The intentions can be coded by different layout devices. A TUs typology according to the author intentions is given. We experimentally demonstrate that this typology has a psychological reality and that a text layout based on this typology has an influence on the reading and consultation process.