The hypermedia tield has long realized the need for firstclass structural abstractions.However, we have failed to generalize the concept of ubiquitous structure management to problem domains other than navigation of information spaces. In this paper, we argue for the recognition of such a generalization, called structural computing, in which we assert the primacy of structure over data. We provide examples of four problem domains that are more naturally modeled with structure than data. We argue that support for structural computing must come in the form of new models, operating systems, and programming languages. We also assert that the experience gained by hypermedia researchers over the last decade may be naturally extended to form the basis of the new field of structural computing, and furthermore, the broadening of the applicability of our work is necessary for the continued vitality of our research community.
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For several years the Texas A&M Bioinformatics Working Group has pursued the construction of a novel digital library resource, an electronic adaptation of the information in the S.M. Tracy Herbarium, a major collection of preserved plants. This paper describes a tool we have developed for panoramically surveying the contents of the collection: the Herbarium Specimen Browser. While some of the Specimen Browser's implementation details (particularly its unconventional use of a full-text retrieval system to store its database, and its specialized mapping software) arc of general interest, it also exhibits properties which designers of similar digital library access systems may find worth considering: support for pattern discovery, use of regularity in hypertext link sources and destinations, and employment of Javascript as an interface simplification mechanism.
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