Petraeus was America's first great digital general. He was the ultimate "PowerPoint Ranger" — the nickname given by military officers to colleagues adept at giving dazzling digital presentations overflowing with data, graphics and bullet points.

Many members of the military should spend much of their time communicating information, but they should use all channels of communication in appropriate ways — and make sure that they are not just "PowerPoint Rangers."

PowerPoint has become such an ingrained part of the defense culture that it has seeped into the military lexicon. "PowerPoint Ranger" is a derogatory term for a desk-bound bureaucrat more adept at making slides than tossing grenades. There is even a "PowerPoint Ranger Creed," a parody of the Marine Corp's famous "Rifleman's Creed".