Here is an article on Lifehacker about what to do to get your online ducks in a row in case you died.

While I think these are good suggestions, I don’t feel they apply to me. Awhile ago (at least a couple of years ago)I wrote out a sheet of what passwords I have in case something happens to me (it does need to be updated). They aren’t the actual passwords but clues and who would know the answers so that if someone didn’t know me, the piece of paper would be close to worthless for them. I would like to say it is filed under D for Death but that would imply a filing system. It is stuck with all the important papers.

The lifehacker article includes making lists of what you wouldn’t want your kids, your parents, your friends to see. Far as I am concerned, I see no reason not to have whoever is taking care of cleaning up my online stuff have full access to everything I have. I will be dead. While I am alive, yes, I need my privacy. But after I am gone, I can’t think of anything that would need to be kept private. One of their examples is a digg account where you make snarky comments. If I had an account where I made snarky comments, I would want whoever wanted to see those to see them. Hell, with my friends, I would want them to be able to poke at them all they wanted. I would want everything to be seen so that people could see me as I really was, not as some highlighted censored version. I would expect people to speak ill of this dead because that is what is real, both good and bad. Laughing at me is expected as well.

I keep my “weird” life separate from my “professional” life for job reasons. I manage peoples’ knowledge and expectations of me so that I can deal with them and maintain boundaries that work for me. I don’t think I have anything that would shock anyone that really knew me. Once I am no more and don’t have to deal with any consequences, I think all this is moot. What would I want kept under wraps after I was gone?

My biggest concern about my after death affairs is how it the hell whoever is going to take charge of it all will get rid of all my crap. I would love it if my door was opened and all of my friends descended upon my stuff like vultures and took things they wanted. That would make me very happy. The people that are closest to me get first dibs and after that it is open season. Take stuff to a con and let the membership walk away with anything. I want the people that want it the most to have it. Take things to shelters or communities or any place supporting people getting together and helping each other out. I would put people wanting money out of it at the bottom of the list but even that is good.

A bonfire of crap would be great. A way to release me. Others could throw things in of their own that they want to release.

Having recently lost a group friend, I realize it isn’t that easy. But from where I am sitting now, I can think it is and put it out there as what I would like. If I were still around. Which I wouldn’t be. You know, if I were dead.