Program or Be Programmed Audiobook By Douglas Rushkoff cover art

Program or Be Programmed

Ten Commands for a Digital Age

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Program or Be Programmed

By: Douglas Rushkoff
Narrated by: Douglas Rushkoff
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $11.66

Buy for $11.66

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

The debate over whether the Net is good or bad for us fills the airwaves and the blogosphere. But for all the heat of claim and counter-claim, the argument is essentially beside the point: It's here; it's everywhere. The real question is, do we direct technology, or do we let ourselves be directed by it and those who have mastered it? "Choose the former," writes Rushkoff, "and you gain access to the control panel of civilization. Choose the latter, and it could be the last real choice you get to make."

In 10 chapters, composed of 10 "commands", Rushkoff provides cyber enthusiasts and technophobes alike with the guidelines to navigate this new universe. In this spirited, accessible poetics of new media, Rushkoff picks up where Marshall McLuhan left off, helping listeners to recognize programming as the new literacy of the digital age - and as a template through which to see beyond social conventions and power structures that have vexed us for centuries. This is a friendly little audiobook with a big and actionable message.

©2012 BetterListen! LLC, all rights reserved. (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.
Social Sciences Programming Software
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about Program or Be Programmed

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    89
  • 4 Stars
    34
  • 3 Stars
    26
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    5
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    85
  • 4 Stars
    36
  • 3 Stars
    10
  • 2 Stars
    6
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    77
  • 4 Stars
    30
  • 3 Stars
    16
  • 2 Stars
    10
  • 1 Stars
    4

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellence again by Rushkoff

Rushkoff does it again. His masterful use of prose excises into the heart of the onion dissecting it into digestible morsels.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Good book, but with some crazy ranting

At times the many historical parallels and comparisons can be insightful and interesting. At other times the comparisons of everything to everything are completely crazy and you catch yourself wondering how you got into listening to it.

The author is no historian, that's certain and a couple of times I just wanted to turn it off in disgust. Many claims lack proper backing and argumentation. I really liked the first part though, so I kept at it. Overall, the book is still worth listening to despite its shortcomings.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

i thought everyone could program

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes. rushkoff is so much fun to listen to.

Who was your favorite character and why?

me. cause the book didn't really have characters in it.

Any additional comments?

the book is not a story. its about cultural change, it is about the past, it is about right now, it is about the future.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Will read again

A very intuitive look at history and how we impact it. I will definitely re read this, more to glean from it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Solid book

this is a solid book on the importance of programming. my main critique of the book is that it's just warns you that people are after your attention in the digital age. many of us already know this and I wish the book would provide remedies for how to combat this aside from learning to code which we generally know anyway. the book sort of succeeds in its emphasis on learning how to code but I don't think you need to read a book to no that's important I wish there were more useful solution oriented comments on how we navigate people that want to control Us in the digital age. if you're looking for a book to read to get you excited about how to learn how to code, this may be enough for you

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great listen!

I am learning to program in Python and this book was a true inspiration! Take a chance and I promise you won't go wrong!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Why is this a book and not a blog post?

I’m genuinely confused what authors think merits a book and not just a blog post.

Here are the main points:

-the internet sure is changing things
-just like written language and the printing press changed things
-guess you should learn how this whole programming thing works so you’re not just a passive participant in this networked device revolution

Nothing objectionable here; I just doubt you’ll learn anything if you’ve been following tech with anything above a passing interest for the last decade.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Totaly fals assumtion

I bought the book assumed it is about programming your life rather than being programmed. But the book is not about it and is talking about something totaly wrong. Author assumes in digital age everyone has to learn computer programming and be able to program software. I am already a software programer and I know for fact that there is no need for every one to be programer. Computer programming is a profession like many others, it is not a life saving knowledge for everyone.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

l'm disappointed at the message

l'm disappointed at the message from the author. here's why. He's blaming everything on the users not knowing how to code and complacently participating in the system of our own exploitations. Though he's acknowledgjng the malice of the corporations and other system that profit from writing their own rules of exploitation manuals, he's not addressing but it's literally you as a person who is buried under bills and all the ills of the world against just about any authority system in place today, including our own government who is nicely profiteering from the close working relationships with these corporations. Coding is not the answer. Becoming aware of these systems at every corner and then realizing our own complacent agreement to them is.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!