Meme War Sequence

"Memes Wars" Sequence (also Century Next Door series, "War of the Memes"). John Barnes. As of winter of 2021:

(1) Orbital Resonance. New York: Tor, 1991.
(2) Kaleidoscope Century. New York: Tor, 1995.
(3) Candle. New York: Tor, 2000. 
(4) The Sky So Big and Black. New York: Tor, 2002. 

Summarized in the on-line SFE: The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (some bold-face deleted):

The Century Next Door, comprises four loosely connected tales – Orbital Resonance (1991), Kaleidoscope Century (1995) and Candle (1999), all three assembled as The Century Next Door (omni 2000), plus The Sky So Big and Black (2002) – which created a recomplicated pattern of Future History through intersections of Time-Travel wipings and rewipings of narrative strands, and the threatening universal ascendance of the Meme One True, which is a kind of combination of hegemonic software and Hive Mind. These intersections are focused through various takes on the War of the Memes, the outcome of which will determine the shape of humanity, perhaps for good. <http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/barnes_john>

The SFE entry goes on to indicate that The Sky So Big and Black has a wider and other agenda from the earlier books, and a preceding comment indicates — as other sources also indicate — that the "Young Adult" novel starting the series, Orbital Resonance, also has other interests and emphases, although both novels have the issue of the War of the Memes as a background or potential theme.

Most immediately relevant, the two central novels in the series, Kaleidoscope Century and Candle.

In Kaleidoscope Century note the "Simulation Modeling Optimizing Targeters (SMOTs) a jump from smart weapons to "brilliant weapons" that attacked an enemy country's natural resources and means of production. These weapons cause massive environmental damage to the earth, and are the predecessors of the memes." And these SMOTs are significant as part of the SF theme of the search for the ultimate weapon.