On Anomalies in Annotation Systems

Abstract: Today's computer-based annotation systems implement a wide range of functionalities that often go beyond those available in traditional paper-and-pencil annotations. Conceptually, annotation systems are based on thoroughly investigated psycho-sociological and pedagogical learning theories. They offer a huge diversity of annotation types that can be placed in textual as well as in multimedia format. Additionally, annotations can be published or shared with a group of interested parties via well-organized repositories. Although highly sophisticated annotation systems exist both conceptually as well as technologically, we still observe that their acceptance is somewhat limited. In this paper, we argue that nowadays annotation systems suffer from several fundamental problems that are inherent in the traditional paper-and-pencil annotation paradigm. As a solution, we propose to shift the annotation paradigm for the implementation of annotation system.