“Not many of us like thinking about death – especially our own. But making plans for what happens after you’re gone is really important for the people you leave behind. So today, we’re launching a new feature that makes it easy to tell Google what you want done with your digital assets when you die or can no longer use your account.” Trailblazing. If you ever wonder why people tend to be favourable to Google – despite its many failing – it’s stuff like this. While others are running cringe-inducing marketing campaigns or planning yet another patent lawsuit, Google gives users an immeasurably important feature like this. If you recently lost somebody, you will understand.
And when Google dies ?
This is great. Actually that is something i thought of.. i was like “ugh, i have to write scripts, have servers payed in advance and so on”
This is a good thing in many ways.
For me its something i really appreciate. But how does Google know when i die?
In the case of the tool above, it’s based on not signing into your google account for more than a user-configurable interval, i.e. I have it set to do so if I don’t sign into my account for a year, with a warning texted to my phone 3 months before the deadline. It’s quite flexible and has a number of options in that regard.
Good move. Frankly, should be law. Websites should not be allowed to hold your data indefinitely.
How about OSNews supporting such a feature?
How many people get your data before your user actions take place, especially if you will it to someone else? That’s a potential advertising goldmine, and you can bet Google will take advantage of it before honoring your wishes.
How is a dead person an advertising goldmine? Live people are much, much more interesting.
Well there’s the whole death industry to consider… (caskets, graves, funerals; all those pointless and expensive customs)
And who signs on the dotted line when purchasing the coffin? A dead person? While the death business is lucrative, dead people are as interesting for marketing purposes as stones.
Knowing who are the relatives of the dead person could be quite profitable though. At the least it could be something as simple as “who is using the same computer as somebody just deceased?”
Of course they are, and it’s live people they’ll get depending on your preferences. That’s where the advertising goldmine is: Google looking at the dead person’s data then corolating that with perhaps a relative or partner. That could get nasty.
To be fair, I don’t think the Google advertising platform works this way. Think simple.
I, fretinator, being of soundish mind, do hereby bequeeth my insightful, profound, and moving comments on OSNews (hereafter known as E.L.Q. lite) to Thom Holwerda (hereafter known as Mr. Fiona Apple) for perpetuity. The other 99%, such as this, I’m taking to the grave.
Great stuff from the company that’s as trustworthy as Facebook when it comes to privacy.
Personally I prefer this article from an individual with some insight and proper analysis instead of the the praise from the usual suspects.
http://www.asymco.com/2013/04/10/making-rain/
Why would you give Google anything important of yours to own in the first place?
People forget that Google is a business, not a charity. They exist to generate profit — that’s the bottom line.
where by “people” you mean, basically, you?