Long before Markdown simplified technical documentation, another plaintext format quietly revolutionized digital manuals: AmigaGuide. Developed in the early 1990s for Commodore's innovative Amiga computers, this hypertext system became the backbone of the operating system's help documentation, blending simplicity with advanced navigation features that feel remarkably contemporary.

The Hypertext Workhorse of AmigaOS

Integrated into AmigaOS starting with Workbench 2.1 in 1992, AmigaGuide transformed static text files into interactive manuals using straightforward ASCII formatting. Its genius lay in accessibility—any text editor could create or modify files, while the native AmigaGuide viewer rendered linked content. The format's structure began with a mandatory declaration:

@database Amigaguide.guide

Commands prefixed with @ enabled sophisticated features:
- Node-based navigation: Content was organized into nodes defined with @NODE and @ENDNODE, allowing topic segmentation
- Cross-linking: @INDEX, @HELP, @NEXT, and @PREV created contextual pathways between sections
- Multi-document journeys: Links could reference external files via AmigaDOS paths, enabling cross-manual navigation

Beyond Text: Multimedia and Evolution

AmigaGuide evolved into a gateway for multimedia content with AmigaOS 3.0. Through the MultiView application (which replaced the original viewer), documents could launch images, animations, and other formats supported by Amiga's Datatype system using syntax like:

"main": "graphics.iff/main"

This transformed manuals into rich interactive experiences—a radical concept in the early 90s. Despite its Amiga roots, the format gained cross-platform viewers for DOS, Windows, Linux, and macOS, including open-source projects like AGReader and WinGuide.

Legacy of a Documentation Pioneer

While largely obsolete today, AmigaGuide demonstrated three revolutionary concepts:
1. Accessible hypertext: Its plaintext approach lowered creation barriers
2. Decentralized linking: External file references anticipated web-like content networks
3. Embedded multimedia: Early recognition of multi-format documentation needs

Modern formats like AsciiDoc and Markdown owe conceptual debts to such pioneers. AmigaGuide's node-based structure also foreshadowed component-oriented documentation systems now common in developer tools. Though Commodore's demise limited its reach, the format remains a testament to the Amiga's forward-thinking design philosophy—where even help files pushed technical boundaries.

Source: Adapted from Wikipedia's AmigaGuide entry (CC BY-SA)