Take Control of Your Digital Legacy

by Joe Kissell

Preserve your data for posterity!

How do you want to be remembered by future generations? You can make a will to handle your physical possessions, but what about your digital life--photos, videos, email, documents, and the like? This ebook, written by tech expert Joe Kissell, covers many aspects of preserving such electronic ephemera as part of your digital legacy.

If you're not at the stage of life where you can think about this for yourself, consider that you may have to do so for your parents or other relatives. It's not all about posterity either, since following Joe's advice will also help loved ones access your key accounts and important info if you're incapacitated, which can happen at any time.

The book will help you with these essential tasks:



Identify your key digital assets: online accounts, photos, audio files, videos, passwords, documents, email, and more.

Plan for each type of digital asset based on your priorities for today, for shortly after you are no longer around, and for posterity. Joe explains the ideal file formats to use, how to deal with social media sites, the best ways to digitize paper documents and photos, and strategies for sharing passwords with family members, among much else.

Communicate your wishes in a -digital will- and designate someone to be its -digital executor.- The book includes a template document that you can develop into a personalized digital will.

Preserve your data for the future. You'll consider types of archival storage media, cloud-based storage services, backups, and what instructions to provide about maintaining your data as file formats and storage media types evolve.
Whether you just want to ensure that your heirs get copies of your favorite family photos and a few key documents or you want to catalog and preserve tens of thousands of digital items, this book helps you make smart decisions about your digital legacy.

Questions answered include:


What strategies can I use for sorting and preserving email?
How can I ensure that my email account will be available to those wrapping up my estate?
What if I have digital data that should be destroyed when I die?
What should I do with my huge photo collection (both digital and paper)?
How can I make my passwords available to those who will need them--but keep them private for now?
What should I think about when handing down purchased audio and video files?
What should happen to my Facebook account when I'm no longer around?
What choices are available for keeping my digital archive available and backed up?
How long should I expect archival media to last?
Should I write an autobituary?
Are online digital legacy services any good?
How will organizing all this stuff benefit me while I'm alive?

127 pages, ebook

Published January 25, 2017

About the author

Joe Kissell is the author of more than 60 books and hundreds of articles on technology topics. In 2017, he also became the publisher of Take Control Books, when alt concepts—the company he runs along with his wife, Morgen Jahnke—acquired the Take Control imprint from TidBITS Publishing Inc. He was the winner of a 2009 Neal award for Best How-to Article, and formerly wrote for publications such as Macworld, TidBITS, and Wirecutter. Before he began writing full-time in 2003, Joe managed software development for Nisus Software and Kensington Technology Group. In his hypothetical spare time, Joe likes to walk, cook, read, and practice tai chi. He lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, with Morgen and their sons.

Reviews

[Dimitri · Rating 4 out of 5]

#📕 Why (Not) to read this book (Target Audience)

Makes you think about the steps to take on your digital life when your physical life has ended.

# 👀 How this book changed my daily live (Takeaways)

Making crucial digital information about yourself accessible to the right people, in the right ways, at the right times (and, as a corollary, destroying information that you don’t want to persist)

# ⁉ Spoiler Alerts (Highlights)

1. Identify Key Digital Assets: The book helps you recognize and prioritize your digital assets, including online accounts, photos, audio files, videos, passwords, documents, and emails.
2. Planning for Today and Beyond: You’ll learn how to plan for each type of digital asset based on your priorities:
* For the present: What actions should you take now?
* Shortly after you’re no longer around: How can your data be handled?
* For posterity: How can you ensure your digital legacy is preserved?
3. Ideal File Formats and Strategies: Joe provides insights into the best file formats to use, dealing with social media sites, digitizing paper documents and photos, and sharing passwords with family members.
4. Creating a Digital Will: You’ll discover how to communicate your wishes effectively through a “digital will” and designate someone as its “digital executor.” The book even includes a template document for your personalized digital will.
5. Preserving Data for the Future: Explore archival storage media, cloud-based storage services, backups, and instructions for maintaining data as file formats and storage evolve.
6. Answering Key Questions: The book addresses important questions, such as:
* How to sort and preserve emails and instant messages?
* Ensuring access to your email accounts after your passing.
* Handling digital data that should be destroyed.
* Managing large photo collections (both digital and paper).
* Passing control of Apple, Google, and Microsoft accounts.
* Balancing privacy and accessibility for passwords.
* Dealing with purchased audio and video files.
* Managing your Facebook account posthumously.
* Keeping your digital archive available and backed up.
* Understanding the longevity of archival media.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good document on advice on how to manage the transition of your digital life to your heirs and executors. Recommended.