The Electronic Grim Reaper

Sometimes it might appear that I have a "problem" with cloud computing.  I don't think that's really the case at all.  I think that it's more that when it comes to technology, I tend to look at things with a critical and skeptical eye.   Especially with technology, I think that this is an important thing to do, as one can quickly become dependent on the technology and if you haven't done your due diligence, then problems can occur in the future.  But then again, like some many other cases, maybe I'm over-analyzing!

My latest aha! moment with cloud computing and one of the inherent problems with it came as I was reading the paper this morning.  This article in question was about the author's relatively large iTunes collection and how he had stored it on iCloud (for convenience).  What he then went on to ponder really shocked me as I had never considered the problem.

He started to question what happens when he passes away.  With all of his digital purchases that exist within the cloud - how does he ensure that the access to these files doesn't expire when he does.  He contacted Apple to discuss and the policy is that access to his iCloud account can be granted to his heirs, but in order for this to be done, Apple would need to see a copy of his death certificate in addition to the appropriate section of his will where he bequeaths his libraries.  Holy Cannoli!.  This means that I need list my digital purchases specifically in my will?  The other thing is that going with this process will just give the heir access to the library, it wouldn't allow them to merge in the contents of the willed library with their own personal collection.

So here's the rub...for me, this is not really so much of an issue as I don't (yet) use cloud computing for anything more than as a backup mechanism.  When I die, all of my digital purchases exist on the hard drive of my computer.  Of course, given that I have two teenagers and they do not have an appreciation for my eclectic love of music in all it's forms, I better find someone better to give it to.  If you have a particular genre or artist that you particularly like, leave a shout out and I'll will it to you :)