I know that sounds strange -- but I've always wondered how any of all my on-line "friends" would ever know what happened to me if I died. I mean, to an on-line group, it would be like you suddenly quit writing and they never knew why.
My kids don't know what forums and lists I subscribe to, and no one in my family knows my passwords to get there. So if I died (which I'm not planning on anytime soon, by the way), you simply would never hear from me again.... what an empty thought.
Do you guys ever think strange things like that?
Farmgirl (who was wondering why Kayla hasn't posted since Saturday -- this isn't like her) Posts: 9538 | Registered: Aug 2003
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Believe it or not, there is actually a web service out there to which you can subscribe that provides this very service. You give them your user names and contact lists, and they promise -- for $1 a month -- to shoot you one E-mail a week. If you don't reply, or if it bounces back, they attempt to contact you at the phone number provided.
If this fails, they immediately send a message to your E-mail contacts and Web forums that indicates that you are no longer available at the given addresses and invites further investigation.
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No, Tom, I will not subscribe to your little "service" just so you can spam me and sell my contact information. Posts: 276 | Registered: Feb 2003
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well, a good friend of mine passed away recently, who was the same age as me, went to the same school same church etc. so ive been having the same kinds of thoughts.
dont know what to say really.
Posts: 2532 | Registered: Jul 2001
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Gather all the info about the people you would want to notify, put it in an envelope, and leave it where it will be found with a note requesting you let these people know of you passing.
Its a gruesome thing to do, like writing a will and such. However, it would be appreciated by those of us who would miss you.
Posts: 11895 | Registered: Apr 2002
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There was a girl that lived in the same neighborhood as me, from when i was like 7. We grew up in the same school together, and even for a while, hung out at parties and stuff together. Then about 6 months ago, I found out that she had died a year prior. Here I lived not even a street away from her, and she had been dead for a year, and I had never known.
she died from pills and boos.
Also, the same day i found out that she had died, i found out another neighborhood friend of mine had died a month prior, from oxycotin.
Posts: 879 | Registered: Aug 2000
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I just assume you're all dead. That way, if I see you post, it's a welcome surprise. Of course, sometimes I feel embarassed about talking to people I think are dead, but no matter.
Posts: 2292 | Registered: Aug 2003
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Not too long ago, I was role-playing on AIM; we had a little supers group that recently fell apart when I burned out. We had been playing since sometime in 2000 or 2001, and then one of our players vanished. The last time we saw her? Just before September 11.
I was utterly shocked when she appeared online and it turned out she had moved to England. Posts: 1041 | Registered: Feb 2002
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Kayla threatened to leave in the emoticon thread. I don't know if she's on any of the shadow fora. I don't really know what happened, there seemed to be a side conversation going on by email. Edit: Also, there is the nun's solution from the last bean book. Nice clarity, I know, but I was up until 2:30 doing dumb stuff. Not even tending a sick child.
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Cyruseh, do you mean oxytocin? During childbirth? That would be, I don't know, too bad for the father if they both died and really sad for the baby if it survived.
Posts: 11017 | Registered: Apr 2003
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On my computer, I have an account set up for my parents with no password. The only item on the desktop is a word document that sort or acts as a last will and testament. I've left a list of items that I'd like my friends to have, and also a list of boards they should post a message to, with my username and password. Hatrack is certainly one of those, as is AIM.
And yes, I got that idea and wrote it while I was in one of my darker moods. Hey, if you're prepared, it's less likely to happen, right?
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See, this is why you must convince one of your friends or family members to come to Hatrack. I imagine that if anything ever happened to me slacker (my hubby) would post something about it here.
Posts: 5879 | Registered: Apr 2001
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If you were going to ask a relative or friend to notify the forum if you died, do you think they should use your login to do it, or register for themselves? I was just picturing opening a thread that was identified as being started by Hatracker X, only to find a message that she or he was dead. And would you post to that thread? And who would you be addressing your posts to? It’s not likely that whoever was asked to notify would come back to read the thread. Nor, (probably) would the dead person. Hmmm.
I’m planning two funerals right now, so morbid speculation is par for the course. Posts: 9866 | Registered: Apr 2002
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pooka, nah, the one who died from oxycotin was a guy, I never looked up the spelling of the drug, but its an anti-depressant, which many people will crush up and snort. Which is what he did.
It was a really weird thing, to find out, on a given day, that two of my neighborhood friends had died, both from drug abuse.
Posts: 879 | Registered: Aug 2000
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Oooh, I was thinking about this a while ago... is kinda creepy. I like the ideas for how to let your online friends know but I'd like to stay secure in my innocent dreams of immortality for a bit longer. Posts: 3420 | Registered: Jun 2002
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cyruseh, I think you mean Oxycontin, a name brand extended release formulation of oxycodone. It is a narcotic, not an antidepressant.
Posts: 1364 | Registered: Feb 2003
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Thats right Danzig, but what do people get it subscribed to them for? I dont really know, but i thought it was for depression...
Posts: 879 | Registered: Aug 2000
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I've already written a landmark to be posted if I die. I just hope someone gets it archived for me.
Posts: 6213 | Registered: May 2001
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Right now I send a list to the webmaster every month. But if I die, well, I don't think I could do that.
Posts: 6213 | Registered: May 2001
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Boy, that's a tough one ! How would you know if I died ?!? Hmm... Thinking a little more on the subject, no one here really knows me on this forum, so who's gonna miss me ?
I guess you are right, Farmgirl, it would be just like if I stopped writing.
But fortunately, I just took the right medicine for this type of questions a couple of days ago, while watching "Patch Adams" So I'm not very concerned about dying right now, rather I try to LIVE ! "Get busy living, or get busy dying" (Shawshank Redemption) -> I choose to be busy living; cool
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pooka -- thanks for the update on Kayla. I didn't know anything about that thread -- went back and found it. Now I'm glad I was out of town and not posting those days......
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I actually had this conversation with a friend from another forum a few months back. I pointed out that she has my email address and my phone number. If I were to die or disappear (no plans to do so, but then, most people don't), I'm sure my parents would intercept both for a while.
Also, they do know the names of the two fora I post most on, and they are both bookmarked on my puter. One way or another, I'm sure y'all would find out.
It actually happened recently on another forum that a poster who hadn't been around for years -- but who a couple of people were still in intermittent contact with -- did pass away. I think it was less than a week before there was an announcement on the board.
Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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It's just a relief to know I'm not the only one that thinks this way -- obviously lots of others do too, or there wouldn't be a service for it!
My luck would probably be --- I would get the service, then my hard drive would die, computer down, and the service would think I'm dead and tell everyone that!
(not really, of course. I have four computers -- I'm sure I could get back online with one of them....)
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Create a login ID like "Ghostofxxx" and then make sure whoever posts uses that to inform the forum that you have gone to the other side.
Works well for me.
NOTE: Farmgirl, this is really weird, I was having that same thought over the past week as I trundled off to get my annual physical, and trundled off to the cardiologists to have my usual abnormal EKG checked to make sure it wasn't getting MORE abnormal (big waste of time)...
Posts: 19 | Registered: Apr 2002
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I never thought of this as a strange thought. I used to think about leaving instructions for a final Hatrack goodbye message in case something happened. However, I don't have to worry about that anymore. If I die my most valuable, most treasured possession--my adorable cat--goes to Mackillian.
If anyone feels like putting ME in a will, feel free to email me. No pets, please, my cat is an only child.
Posts: 1990 | Registered: Feb 2001
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Actually, if I died, my friend Molly would go into my yahoo account and e-mail everyone with the news. She's the only one who knows the password now. There are several Hatrackers in my address book, so it would get here that way.
That sort of happened when I had that accident in Germany. My friend e-mailed everyone in my address book (it was much smaller then, and contained only friends (instead of business and so on)) and Amka got it and told Hatrack. That worked fine.
All you need is one friend with the password. Posts: 26077 | Registered: Mar 2000
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I went through this recently -- a friend of mine passed away (colon cancer) and I checked his email to get addresses for folks he'd been writing to, to let them know. (I used my own email address to let them know though!)
It's a good thing to do... it's strange now that we can live in a world where friends can disappear and you never know what happened...
Posts: 2911 | Registered: Aug 2001
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The guy who introduced me to the forum would be notified if I kicked the bucket, so he'd probably post it to all the forums (fori?) we both frequent. All my friends' emails are in my non-computerized address book, so I imagine somebody in my family would notify the more far-flung of the people who know me.
Not sure it makes me morbid or not, but I *am* prepared.
Posts: 471 | Registered: Jul 2002
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Everyone knows my phone numbers, so if I were gone for a while, I expect someone would call to see what was up, and someone here would probably answer and let them know. My mother would probably even call Saudade to let her know. I do believe she thinks of her as real now. My niece Sarah is an online person but I don't think I've introduced her to any of you guys. I know some of her friends so I could tell them if (heaven forbid) something were to happen to her. Yes, I've thought about this, especially when I've been friends with people online who were going through some bad times and were feeling suicidal. How would I know?
Saudade promised me she will take care of her siblings if anything happens to me. I told Mama to give her whatever money is left over to help with cat expenses. Before I go to Iraq, I'm making a real will, just in case. I would leave instructions for my brother Mikie to post here but I don't think he would do it. What I will do is leave Mama a list of phone numbers of people to call, and I'll put Anna and Saudade and Jaiden and people like that on it. That will work.
Posts: 968 | Registered: Sep 2003
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I've been wondering about that recently too. Or what if someone got kidnapped or something right after they posted on a forum? Could you be like, "That looks just like the picture such-and-such posted of themself and the last time they posted was only an hour before they were last seen. And in that post they said they were going to the mall." And somehow the person gets found. The internet is a strange thing. I don't know if my parents would check my favorite's folder or anything for the sites I go to to tell people. I doubt they would.
Posts: 981 | Registered: Aug 2003
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and it turned out she had moved to England. ![[Blushing]](graemlins/blushing.gif)
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So I'm not very concerned about dying right now, rather I try to LIVE !![[Cool]](cool.gif)
