Of all the projects examined here, Mark Napier's Shredder is perhaps the candidate par excellence for membership in COLmm. The Shredder is a programme that can roam the Internet for any URL and then digest the code and contents to create something quite different than was initially intended by the source site. Like any fine anthropophagic meal, this is done with respect for the source food as it does not cause any unnecessary harm to the original site, but merely assimilates its qualities and properties for other purposes. The aesthetic and political stance of a programme such as the Shredder is based on calling our attention to the transparent illusion of representation still prevalent in most Web sites. By transforming code itself into aesthetic material the programme invites users to question their diet of transparent, user-friendly, fast food generally served up on the Internet.
