The Art of Memetics: Pirate Edition

April 1, 2008 3:00 PM

This is impressive. Two authors have made a "authorized" pirate edition of a forthcoming book available via multiple torrent networks. It will be interesting to see if it helps, hurts or contributes no effect to sales.

"This book combines marketing, magic, theory on group minds, and memetics, while using the concept of networked complex systems (cybernetics) to explain how ideas, goals, and desires can manifest in one’s environment and through social interaction. It’s in many ways an engineering book for magicians on synchronicity. We believe that taking these tools from marketing, institutional control systems, and giving them away freely in a book written for the culture jammer, will only strengthen the community internally (plus we do want to sell a few books… we’ve worked on this book for over a year.)"

posted by metameme (18 comments total)

An engineering book for magicians?
posted by box at 3:02 PM on April 1

It will be interesting to see if it helps, hurts or contributes no effect to sales.

How would it be possible to tell?
posted by jack_mo at 3:16 PM on April 1

Will it help the sales of this book? Yes, because its grabbing at all that "HEY LOOK WE ARE TORRENTING THIS BOOK THATS WHAT ALL THE KIDS ARE DOING THESE DAYS" publicity. Will later books distributed in this format work? Mabye.
posted by Mach5 at 3:19 PM on April 1

Huh. Well, it'll certainly be hard to quantify any effect on sales. I dug Matheny's Ong's Hat stuff, so I'll read it, though I can't promise I'll buy it (in fact I can almost certainly promise that I won't). Never did find out if Game Over was just a hoax or a real book.
posted by adamdschneider at 3:32 PM on April 1

Self-link?
posted by generalist at 3:38 PM on April 1

This book combines marketing, magic, theory on group minds, and memetics, while using the concept of networked complex systems (cybernetics) to explain how ideas, goals, and desires can manifest in one’s environment and through social interaction.

Fail right there.
posted by KirkJobSluder at 3:38 PM on April 1

Wes, did you read the FAQ before posting here? Because you just posted a link to your own blog, and an ad for your own book. That's not allowed here.
posted by jtron at 3:48 PM on April 1

Oh and this, too.
posted by generalist at 3:50 PM on April 1

Good post, too bad its a self-link.
posted by mrbill at 3:52 PM on April 1

I know, which makes me even sadder, because I'm really interested in all that stuff.
posted by jtron at 3:52 PM on April 1

Sorry guys, not self links but yes, links form blogs that I read regularly.
I promise to expand my reading in the future.
posted by metameme at 3:54 PM on April 1

Ban Hammer!!!!!!!!!!!
posted by zerobyproxy at 3:55 PM on April 1

So the "our" in "our latest podcast" and "our rebuttals" refer to, what, the noosphere?
posted by generalist at 3:56 PM on April 1

No, it refers to me copying text out of a email newsletter.
posted by metameme at 3:57 PM on April 1

Well then, apologies if this is not a self-link, but you must admit this looks kind of suspicious.
posted by jtron at 4:03 PM on April 1

Our current statement is R0lex repl1ca is a ult1mate g1ft!!!
posted by generalist at 4:03 PM on April 1

I guess I can see your point. Like I said, I promise the next post will come from a blog I've never read before. ;)
posted by metameme at 4:04 PM on April 1

Some books are more suited to the kind of repeat use on paper for which a printed book is useful. Others are not. This one? I think not. I suspect therefore, that sales will be negligibly affected by availability online.

I am also confused about the audience of this work. It is not an academic work-- it doesn't have enough focus or rigor. It claims to be a manifesto without expressing the rhetorical simplicity of most manifestos.

It's also part workbook, with exercises in the techniques of taking control over the social and memetic networks that enslave us all, evidently.

Mastering even a few of the ideas in this text will improve many aspects of your personal growth, your professional life, and the general health and welfare of the social groups within which you network.

Overall, they seem to have discovered that there is value in making considered decisions based on your experience of life.

The appendix is particularly helpful:

Imaginal Time and the Construction of Sigils

In case you wish to be the mage of your society:

Within each world view there then must be that which is held apart from common life, be it festival, religion, or monthly party meetings - on the corporate level these are the employee meetings and holiday office parties - and the keeper of the calendar is the mage of that society

Although I find this book to be mostly naive and silly, I do respect the massive amount of work these two artists have put into trying to piece together some kind of aesthetic that connects their actions as artists to society and human experience.

They should have been more self-critical, they should have read more carefully, but I do respect the passion and idealism which has gone into their attempt to figure things out.
posted by honest knave at 4:06 PM on April 1