Comparing paper and online dictionaries. The experience of the Italian Nuovo De Mauro

The article describes the new elements related to the use and editing of digital dictionaries compared to traditional printed editions. The framework assumed is the more general evolution of the "text" product in computer-mediated communication and on the Internet, which causes specificities even with respect to the computerized versions of paper dictionaries on CD-Rom or USB support. The analysis is articulated by considering, first in a distinct way, the point of view of the user and that of the editorial staff, with particular reference to the experience of the Italian Nuovo De Mauro, and then intertwine the considerations carried out in an organic interpretation of the current evolutions and those desirable for the near future. Trends toward a hypertextual, multimedia and collaborative lexicography are shown, by browsing the main online dictionaries in Italian and other European languages; in the discussion, it is argued that these represent a new media, where innovative paths for accessing the complexity of the lexicon are possible, while guaranteeing the technicality of lexicographic content.