Rhetoric of code is the study of how software use and development has communicative properties in the form of code-text. (Beck, 2016). This is not something I thought I’d be studying as an English major. Even though this concept was/still is hard to grasp, I’m glad I did. Learning about code or atleast the rhetoric of it, is beneficial even to the average Joe. According to Brock, in his chapter, “Toward The Rhetorical Study of Code,” the amount of code produced each day lands on a wapping number of billions. Holy cow, that’s a lot. Code is everywhere. It has an impact on a “myriad aspects of daily life,” which entails for a more focused and intentional study on the matter. If you’re anything like me though, you need a real life example. The one Brock gives, really helped me conceptualize the concept of rhetorical code.
Rhetoric of HeartBleed
Brock informs his users about the small bug from OpenSSL known as “Heartbleed.” OpenSSL is a “software library for ensuring secure communication in and across computer networks.” It’s a very popular library that includes systems like Amazon, Minecraft, Reddit, SoundCloud, Tumblr, Wikipedia, etc. I use amazon and reddit all the time. My little cousin is obsessed with minecraft. Aspiring artists have released their music on soundcloud since the platform came out. It’s important to think of how often you or your loved ones use popular platforms like these because of how dangerous this could be. Having names really helps to internalize something so grand as code.
This ‘small’ bug put a lot of users at risk of data leakage. Data in which revealed a lot of sensitive information. Attackers would send out the “Heartbleed” an infinite amount of times to get information on unsuspecting or vulnerable targets. This demonstrates that the code was used as a form of communication possibly between attackers. They had their own lexicon/jargon in a sense.
This bug remained infectious for two years but was resolved instantly…why? Because the majority of people don’t know the rhetorical devices of code. That involves code-related literacy (Vee, 2017) people are usually intimidated by. Since we participate in code unknowingly, it’s essential to know at least the basics.
Developer Comments
Rhetorical code is just like any other form of rhetoric. If it is used to communicate and brings a person to a point of view they didn’t have before, consider it rhetoric. In this sense, communication could be between developers in the form of comments. Comments are notes developers leave within the code to explain something humans can understand. That could be an explanation of what it does or something like “/* silently discard */” (snhenson et al. 2015). Computers ignore these comments, it’s not meant for them. These comments can help future developers understand the logic behind the work. Or help aid new developers or coworkers working on the same code. The study of rhetoric of code can also potentially open doors for more effective communication between developers and their users, and users with other users.
Like with any rhetoric, there are downsides. The cultural and social concerns are worth further study. The possibilities are endless but we must start somewhere. That somewhere is awareness that a topic like this even exists.
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