Critical Code Studies Blog

Hi, all,

I wanted to announce the launch of a new collaborative blog titled
Critical Code Studies (http://criticalcodestudies.com). The blog is
dedicated to exploring interpretations of computer code within
cultural contexts. Rather than focusing primarily on making code
function or even the pursuit of "beautiful" code, critical code
studies brings in critical theory to examine the ways in which the
lines of code reflect, shape, and reproduce our culture including
aspects of class, gender, race, sexuality. These criticisms include
both the context for the code's creation and the ways in which it
circulates in culture. Rather than one specific lens, CCS names a
growing collection of methodologies for making/finding meaning in
code.

Critical Code Studies builds on recent efforts toward software and
hardware studies to perform semiotic readings of computer source code.
This blog builds off several presentations at the most recent Modern
Language Association and Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts
conferences. The theme of the SLSA '07 "Code"
(http://www.slsa07.com/) reflects a growing movement toward reading
various kinds of codes, including computer source code. As
cybercritics become more literate in coding languages and practices,
increasingly their analysis of technoculture is including excerpts of
the code itself. The texts under consideration may be executable
programs, pseudocode, scripts, markup, or even code-like, as all of
these inform the way code means.

Blog co-authors include technoculture critics as well as codework
artists. A complete list of blog authors is available below and on
the site.

The blog offers several resources, including:
Growing Bibliography of Critical Code Studies works
(also indexed under Citeulike)
Links to repositories of code to analyze.
Del.icio.us Feed of bookmarks (tagged critical_code_studies)
http://del.icio.us/tag/critical_code_studies
LibraryThing collection of book titles.
http://www.librarything.com/catalog/critcode
List of related researchers

A review of some influential Critical Code Studies can be found in the
electronic book review.
http://www.electronicbookreview.com/thread/electropoetics/codology

To join the community of bloggers, please contact Mark Marino.
[mark+c+marino [at] gmail [dotted] com.

CCS Bloggers

* Christian U Andersen
* Sandy Baldwin
* Gregory Bringman
* Patrick Burgaud
* Wendy Hui Kyong Chun
* Christy Dena
* Jeremy Douglass
* Aden Evens
* Daniel Howe
* Mark Marino
* Mez
* Wayne Miller
* David Parry
* Rita Raley
* Amit Ray
* Braxton Soderman
* Paul Swartz


–
Writing Program
University of Southern California
http://CriticalCodeStudies.com
http://writerresponsetheory.org