Ghosts in the Machine

[Schwitzer]

I might move this to the Intellectual Roundtable depending on how the conversation in this thread unfolds.

An interesting article I originally found linked to on icantlose.com, this is about what happens to our online personas when we die. It's a very interesting read.

http://www.citypaper.com/news/story.asp?id=8182

[Ark-templarius]

Sardaukar comes to mind after reading this.

I've always been unsure about how I would want to have the issue of my death addressed online. People are skeptical and heartless, so I might just want a few people to know instead of making it public.

[bluemicrobyte]

interesting

[XTERMIN8OR1]

Yeah; it really is interesting. I once thought about what would happen to internet accounts of deceased people, but not so thorougly. I even didn't know there are sites that provide these services. Not that I'll ever use such service.

[Schwitzer]

I ended up deciding to move this.

The thought of what would happen if I died had occurred to me, and for the longest time it seemed that my death would go completely unannounced and everyone would be left asking, "Where did that switz guy go?!" At the moment there's another guy from my college who browses these forums, so in the unlikely event that I do die it's likely you'll hear about it.

[Battlecruiser]

Hmm... Nice article. I have heard of Sardauker even though I was never a member of Blizzforums. It is weird, though most of the people in Warboards are just young teenagers like me. I probably will leave these forums and pretty much the internet sometime before I am 20, so I most probably won't die as an active member, but I guess if other people my age stay online even after they become married and stuff, you will start to see much more deaths.

At the moment there's another guy from my college who browses these forums, so in the unlikely event that I do die it's likely you'll hear about it.
Would that be Grom_Icecream?

[Schwitzer]

Yes, Grom_Icecream is a good mate of mine. A damned good chess and DotA player, too.

[TranquilNightElf]

The thought of what would happen if I died had occurred to me, and for the longest time it seemed that my death would go completely unannounced and everyone would be left asking, "Where did that switz guy go?!"

That was a sobering read
Thoughts on such lines have come to mind...especially since i read about Sardaukar .

I wonder how a foum would treat the passing away of it's member(s).

[TheBB]

I ended up deciding to move this.

The thought of what would happen if I died had occurred to me, and for the longest time it seemed that my death would go completely unannounced and everyone would be left asking, "Where did that switz guy go?!" At the moment there's another guy from my college who browses these forums, so in the unlikely event that I do die it's likely you'll hear about it.

Actually, I would worry more about me dying, and everyone not asking where I went!

Allegedly, Elcap wrote a special program that fixes up a number of things in his online world. In the case he should die, if someone would just run the program, it would leave posts on this and that forum, update his website, send some e-mails, etc.

It may not be such a big problem now, but in some decades, the web will be filled with junk profiles, never being used. And we can't erect 10-20 memorial pages on every internet service someone has used every time someone dies.

[XTERMIN8OR1]

In the case I died, a relative of mine would aware my online friends. I don't need the services of such web-site.

[Spdstr]

It is amazing how many lives someone can effect, even over the internet when they pass away. I'm not saying this to mock his death, but it'd be really scary if his accounts would become active and people would begin getting messages from him...

Member,
~ Spdstr

P.S. I don't think it said how he died, but I was just wondering.

[GrassDragon]

I had never really thought about what would happen to my online persona when I die. I do know so many people only over the internet, and a lot of old friends that I only communicate with now over the internet. If I were to pass away (I don't expect it to happen tomorrow, being 14, but you never know) I don't know who would come online and inform people about my death. My parents and friends don't know all the friends I've made online, so I don't think they'd be able to contact all of them. Really something to think about...

P.S. I don't think it said how he died, but I was just wondering.

I think it said somewhere in the article that the family didn't comment on how he died.

[Spdstr]

Didn't think so ;).

Member,
~ Spdstr