What happens to us when you go?

[semiiramiis]

No one really wants to consider things like this, but I found this article quite thought provoking:

http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20090314/ap_on_hi_te/tec_death_online

What happens to your online community when you die? Your friends? Your contacts? We know when you're around, and we notice when you stop showing up. We wonder where you've gone, and if we know you pretty well, we worry. But few of us really consider taking care of our online friends if the unthinkable happens. I'm pretty lucky, my family understands WoW, knows my passwords, and would inform my guild if something happened to me. But they don't know the passwords for the email accounts I use, which have my enlarged contact lists saved on them. They don't keep a list of which forums I frequent, so even in an internet savvy household like mine, a lot of these contacts would never be informed.

[snowieken]

Being a member of quite a few online communities, I have thought about this before as well. My girlfriend knows a lot of the communities I'm part of: she knows my guild, she knows these forums,... But I am fairly certain contacting any of these communities when I pass away would be the last concern on her mind.

We have a few people in our guild who were completely active every day until they just stopped logging on their characters or any alts. Either they went cold turkey and completely stopped playing from one day to another, or they have moved on with new characters. But in both of those two cases, they probably would have said something. So there is a definate possibility something has happened to them. I'd like not to think about that too much, though.

[mesonm]

Snow hit on my main thought, which is that the online community (relating to a video game) is the last place you need to tend to if someone passes away.

The information that you've died isn't relevant to anyone really, other than as very casual information, and they haven't ever met you in most cases.

I could see this being more useful for facebook, etc. where you likely know most everyone you are friends with. Might also be useful for finances, etc.

[Shellar]

Yet another benefit of being immortal.

[Valas Azuviir]

Yet another benefit of being immortal.

At least until someone takes your head, for there can be only one.

*Sound of swords clashing in the background* :tongue:

[Shellar]

At least until someone takes your head, for there can be only one.
Should that happen, tradition dictates that the responsibility for notifying the community falls upon the winner of the duel (who, more often than not, was going to boast about it anyway).

[SmileCatastrophe]

Online identities are certainly ephemeral.
Real life identities can be as well. We all have the ability to disappear and recreate ourselves. It usually costs more money.
But even if you disappear online, some statement of yours will linger for a bit longer in the collective memory of the community. Even if no one ever reads it.