Real Wars on Virtual Battlefields (Paperback)

Paperback. The book analyzes the multifarious exchange of algorithmic technologies and concepts between the military and the media industry from the early 1990s until now. Unlike most related scholarly work which focuses on digital games, it drafts a model of programmable media which is grounded in a close-reading of the key technologies, most notably the paradigm of object-oriented programming, and reconsiders technical disciplines from a humanities perspective. This model is then applied to analyze the effects of algorithmic logic on the military-civilian continuum, including economic practices, patterns of media usage and military decision-making. "Real Wars on Virtual Battlefields" analyes the multifarious exchange of algorithmic technologies and concepts between the military and the media industry from the early 1990s until today. Unlike most related scholarly works, which focus on digital games, this book drafts a model of programmable media that is grounded in a close reading of the key technologies. Key technologies reviewed are most notably the paradigm of object-oriented programming and technical disciplines from a humanities perspective. This model is then applied to analye the effects of algorithmic logic on the military-civilian continuum, including economic practices, patterns of media usage, and military decision-making. Stefan Werning is currently working at Nintendo of Europe as a usergenerated content supervisor. His research fields include the history of technology, new-media phenomena, and the theoriation of transmedia products and practices. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.…