Hypertext was the main concept that led to the invention of the World Wide Web, which is now extended to a HyperMedia system.
The term was first used by TedNelson in describing his XanaduProject. Contrary to his intention, the WWW degenerated into a consumer-oriented (mostly) Read Only Medium and not a collaborative Authoring Medium.
WikiForums are our second chance for realizing collaborative hypertext in the Web. The even more challenging vision of collaborative HyperMedia is at moment not very common in the Wiki community.
See also WeavingTheWeb