Technical Communication Quarterly Jul 2005

Looking to the Future: Electronic Texts and the Deepening Interface

Barbara Warnick

Abstract

Since the initial appearance of rhetorical analysis of text-based and hypertext communication, the rhetoric of technology has evolved along with the new media forms it studies. This essay reviews critical consensus that calls for a move away from printcentric criticism. It advocates innovative methods for criticism of electronic texts, such as emphasis on comparative media analysis, visual representation, and attention to the programming and codification of electronic texts.

Journal
Technical Communication Quarterly
Published
2005-07-01
DOI
10.1207/s15427625tcq1403_11
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism digital rhetoric
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (9)

  1. Selber (2020)
    Historicizing Infrastructural Contexts for Teaching and Learning: A Heuristic f…
    Computers and Composition
  2. Gallagher et al. (2019)
    Empty Templates: The Ethical Habits of Empty State Pages
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  3. Lamberti et al. (2012)
    Gaming/Writing and Evolving Forms of Rhetorical Awareness
    Pedagogy
  4. Lanier (2011)
    Open Source Software Peer-To-Peer Forums and Culture: A Preliminary Investigati…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. Rice (2009)
    Woodward Paths: Motorizing Space
    Technical Communication Quarterly
Show all 9 →
  1. Spoel (2008)
    Communicating Values, Valuing Community through Health-Care Websites: Midwifery…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  2. Kostelnick (2008)
    The Visual Rhetoric of Data Displays: The Conundrum of Clarity*
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  3. Kostelnick (2007)
    The Visual Rhetoric of Data Displays: The Conundrum of Clarity
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  4. Haskins (2007)
    Between Archive and Participation: Public Memory in a Digital Age
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly

References (19)

  1. Aarseth, Espen J. Cybertext: Perspectives on Ergodic Literature. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1997.
     ↗
  2. Bakhtin, M. M. The Dialogic Imagination: Four Essays. Trans. Caryl Emerson and Michael Holquist. Ed. Michael …
  3. Barthes, Roland. Image Music Text. Trans. Stephen Heath. New York: Noonday P, 1977.
  4. Barthes, Roland: Hill and Wang, 1974.
  5. Bolter, Jay David, and Richard Grusin. Remediation: Understanding New Media. Cambridge: MIT P, 1999.
Show all 19 →
  1. Burnett, Robert, and P. David Marshall. Web Theory: An Introduction. London: Routledge, 2003.
  2. Fritch, John W., and Robert L. Cromwell. "Evaluating Internet Resources." Journal of the American Society for…
     ↗
  3. Gurak, Laura J. Persuasion and Privacy in Cyberspace: The Online Protests over Lotus MarketPlace and the Clip…
  4. Gurak, Laura J., and John Logie. "Internet Protests: From Text to Web." Cyberactivism: Online Activism in The…
  5. Hayles, N. Katherine. Writing Machines. Cambridge: MIT P, 2002.
     ↗
  6. Hill, Charles A., and Marguerite Helmers, eds.Defining Visual Rhetorics. Mahwah: Erlbaum, 2004.
  7. 10.1177/146144402320564392
     ↗
  8. Landow, George P. Hypertext 2.0. 1992. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1997.
  9. 10.1177/14614440222226370
     ↗
  10. Manovich, Lev. The Language of New Media. Cambridge: MIT P, 2001.
     ↗
  11. Schlein, Alan M. Find It Online: The Complete Guide to Online Research. 3rd ed. Tempe, AZ: Facts on Demand P, 2003.
  12. Warnick, Barbara. Critical Literacy in a Digital Era: Technology, Rhetoric, and the Public Interest. Mahwah: …
  13. Warnick Barbara (2004)
    Austin, TX.
  14. "WaybackMachine." Internet Archive. 14 Dec. 2004 <http://www.waybackmachine.org>.
CrossRef global citation count: 15 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Computers and Composition Jun 2026
    Legacies, commitments, and new challenges: The Sweetland Digital Rhetoric Collaborative interviews three generations of Computers and Composition editors ↗
    Ali Alalem; Alyse Campbell; Thais Rodrigues Cons; Funmilola Fadairo; Nicole Koyuki Golden
    rhetorical criticism collaborative writing digital rhetoric
  2. Res Rhetorica Jan 2026
    Review/Recenzja: Nancy Organ. 2024. Data Visualization for People of All Ages. Oxon: CRC Press; and Jen Christiansen. 2023. Building Science Graphics: An Illustrated Guide to Communicating Science Through Diagrams and Visualizations. Oxon: CRC Press ↗
    Ewa Modrzejewska
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism discourse analysis digital rhetoric multimodality grammar and mechanics race and writing book reviews
  3. Rhetoric Society Quarterly Jan 2026
    The Paradigmatic Aftermath of Digital Rhetoric ↗
    Caddie Alford
    rhetorical criticism digital rhetoric
  4. Communication Design Quarterly Sep 2025
    Review of "Queer Techné: Bodies, Rhetoric, and Desire in the History of Computing by Patricia Fancher," Fancher P. (2024). Queer techné: Bodies, rhetoric, and desire in the history of computing. National Council of Teachers of English. ↗
    Thomas Gurinskas
    rhetorical criticism technical communication professional writing archival research digital rhetoric gender and writing book reviews
  5. Pedagogy Apr 2025
    Contributors ↗
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism african american rhetorics cultural rhetorics first-year composition writing pedagogy basic writing graduate education two-year college teacher development writing centers technical communication professional writing labor and working conditions digital rhetoric multimodality social media literacy studies race and writing gender and writing community literacy literary studies editorial matter