[Twittervision is] a hypnotic glimpse into the lives of people around the world. [It's] a complete waste of time -- in the same way that conversation, casual sex, and reading are wastes of time.
Nat Torkington of O'Reilly quoted in Is Twitter Here to Stay? in the MIT Technology Review back in April.
So there's the sex part.
Re death: How soon before our online profiles allow us to identify our next-of-kin -- so that in the event of death someone has the option to logon and let the world know that we won't be posting anymore?
5 comments:
I think you're on to something.
Have you heard of the company that will deliver letters to family after believer's have been taken in the Rapture? The people who started the company are atheists, but very civic minded.
Annie: I know! That idea rocks. Best business idea ever.
Also: Dead Letter Office
http://www.thedeadletter.com/
Suttonhoo: that's sort of the ultimate step of intimacy, isn't it? Giving someone the password to your blog etc., so that they can go online and announce to the world that you're dead? Giving someone control over your public profile.
I think being Atheist is key to maintaining the credibility necessary to pull off that business model -- it gives your customer some reassurance that you'll be around to flip the switch in the event of their disappearance. :)
re the ultimate intimacy: it is, but I think some restrictions are in order. the next of kin login would be restricted according to rules that you set up -- the chief goal would be to post a "meta-banner" of some kind -- that stands apart from usual posts, maybe parked about the main column, that states so-and-so has departed.
from there you could confer permission to hide or delete posts -- or not -- the way some folks demand that their letters be burned after their death.
you could even grant permission to allow your next of kin to edit posts -- so long as some kind of visual indicator made it clear that "this post was edited by someone who was not the original author."
what I wouldn't want: someone logging in as me after I'm gone. the interface should make it clear that it's someone else.
I've seen this handled a few different ways. Mostly the final post that states that so and so has passed and this post was written by another so and so. One girl I've read though put a post on her husband's profile that she would now be administering his flickr account, since he'd passed, and would be uploading more of his photos on her account so as not to change what he left.
I've always wondered how they ended up with the password. I'm pretty sure that my friend that passed wouldn't have left his password with his brother, who did the final post, or anyone else for that matter.
Another of my friends has written a final email that she will have sent out after she goes. I think she was going to put it in her will.
re your last comment suttonhoo: maybe a guest password would do the trick?
a guest password is in an interesting idea -- but take it one step further. kind of like someone acting for you under power of attorney.
it'll be interesting to see what takes shape as our online communities start to age...
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