1.2 How this document is structured

This document is roughly a hypertext tree, and the icons at the top of each page are to help you navigate the tree. The tree has several levels, which come together at the Contents Page. Each level down the tree represents an increase in the amount of detail provided, but you can read at the level you are comfortable with by using the "Left" and "Right" icons as described below.

The pages are numbered with numbers like 4.3.1, which you can think of as section 4, subsection 3, subsubsection 1. Above page 4.3.1, there is 4.3, for example.

Every page begins with a table of contents showing all the pages that live below the current page. You can go to any of them by clicking on the corresponding entry. The table of contents might be empty, in which case there are no pages below the current page.

Here's what the various navigator icons at the top of each page do:

Home page

Takes you to the Home page, the first page you see.

Left page

Takes you left one page on the current level. For example, from page 4.3.2 to page 4.3.1. It is blanked out in case there is no previous page on the current level, e.g. 4.3.1 has no previous page. To get from 4.3.1 to 4.3, use the Up icon:

Up a page

This takes you up a node to the parent. For example, from page 1.5.3 to page 1.5. If you are on a page 1, 2, 3 etc. (just a single number), it takes you to the Contents page.

Right page

This is the opposite of Left page; it takes you from 4.3.1 to 4.3.2, for example.

Table of Contents

Takes you to the table of contents for the entire document.

Remember that whenever there are pages below the current page, a table of contents appears at the top of the page. Just to the left of the table of contents, there is a shortcut icon for descending one level:

Go down to the next page

This icon appears to the left of tables of contents, and it is a shortcut which always takes you to the first entry of the table.

Homework Problem:

(Well, not really!) What is the difference between pressing the Left button on this page, and pressing the Back button on the browser window? Why is the Forward button on the browser window usually greyed out? When is it not greyed out?

If you're stumped, read 1.4 Frequently Asked Questions .


Keith Orpen, who is still writing this, would like to hear your comments and suggestions.