This is in an area of something I have been giving a lot of thought to for the past several months. What I have been thinking about is all the websites, software and other internet assets that would be lost due to its owner death. How do you preserve assets that others, in your family, may not know what to do with when you die.
I think of it with my stuff. I have 8 online application, 5 full blown websites that support a specific community, 7 freeware applications and many code samples in my dev library. What would happen to this stuff if something happened to me. I would want the stuff passed along to someone else who I thought would keep the stuff alive, for free, as I intended.
I thought there was a need for a web service where keys (passwords), files (source code) and instructions where kept in a highly secure, encrypted state with a list of other users who would get parts or all of the information upon something happening to me. The service would be marketed as a way to preserve the assets of the internet and keeping the original developers intent alive even after their death.
I really don't like the "I will try and contact you and if you don't respond then you are dead approach" since I would be asking people to entrust very sensitive information to the website service. I think a two-key process would work better where both keys have to be turned to mark you as dead. Then you can give out these keys to people within your family or, for a simple charge, put the keys within the service who you turn the keys upon proof of death.
Anyway, just another though in my head which will make my
Ideas section of my blog. (actually going to repost this information there).