Information can be accessed through a hypertext document in a linear form or in a non-linear form.
In accepting the document in its hypertext form, the reader is able to decide, whether or not he requires more details on a given subject. This means by following links, to other documents or even web sites, that the reader is opening up the amount of information, that is available, to include the whole of the WWW.
By just reading straight through a document, you are forced, in a linear form, to accept the information in the order the author decides.