Ben of the Institute for the Future of the Book writes in about his latest project, "an open online book from Hacker Manifesto author McKenzie Wark entitled GAM3R 7H30RY (gamer theory). The subject: video games (as allegories of the world we live in).
"GAM3R 7H30RY 1.1 is an experiment in networked publishing. The Institute designed a web site that would enable McKenzie to engage with readers before the book is fully cooked, to see how a larger conversation might impact its development. Each individual paragraph has its own comment stream allowing for fine-grained response to the text. There's also a free-fire discussion forum where people can start their own conversations about the meaning of games and the propositions ventured in the book. It's all published under a CC license.
"All in all, an envelope-pushing endeavor, in both form and content. Eventually, GAM3R 7H30RY will be published by a conventional press, but between now and then we're trying to investigate new creative strategies in the peer-to-peer environment. We call this a 'networked book' – the book as social software. We're hoping to spark discussion about that as well."
(Thanks, Ben!)
