training/life journal

[Anarax]

theres things I've written 8 or 9 years ago I can't access anymore.

I understand, but because you can't doesn't mean there aren't other people who can. One of the reasons my profession exists.

if my goal is to have something I can pass on for generations I'm going paper.

For the longest time oral was the form people used to pass along information, then cave walls, then paper and now digital. The easiest and most reliable method would be to update your journals continuously on a cloud service then give your grandchildren access. That way if something unexpectedly happens to you then they have access already. "Grandchildren" meaning more that one, so that means they have to share a journal? If it was digital they could all read it anywhere anytime they want. Would you also prefer to have an old polaroid camera to take pictures? Or a digital camera where you can save as many pictures as you want and share them with countless loved ones? Is it the film that the picture is printed on important or the memories it preserves?

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

I understand, but because you can't doesn't mean there aren't other people who can. One of the reasons my profession exists.

I get that, but they wouldn't know to find a professional who can retrieve it. They wouldn't know where I have an account to find it

 

[Anarax]

I get that, but they wouldn't know to find a professional who can retrieve it. They wouldn't know where I have an account to find it

I was referring to you though, you were making the point that because you can't access your own data then that makes it a flawed storage method, which isn't true. Concerning your grandchildren, if you kept it a secret, told absolutely no one, left no trace of its existence, forgot you password, deleted your account and chose not to contact a computer specialist, then yes you are correct they wouldn't know about it. However; if you set it up with the intention of preserving it and passing it along to them, then they can easily access it.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

I was referring to you though, you were making the point that because you can't access your own data then that makes it a flawed storage method, which isn't true. Concerning your grandchildren, if you kept it a secret, told absolutely no one, left no trace of its existence, forgot you password, deleted your account and chose not to contact a computer specialist, then yes you are correct they wouldn't know about it. However; if you set it up with the intention of preserving it and passing it along to them, then they can easily access it.

I mis-made my point then. There's a possibility that I will make a journal, and it might be something my grandkids are interested in. My own grandfather had a journal, and after he died, my mom typed it up, made a book out of it and gave a copy to me and my cousins at Christmas. It wasn't his intention to pass that on, but it's something that means a lot to us. If that had been done on a cloud somehow, none of us would ever have known about it, and we wouldn't have that piece of his life with us.

Regarding your first comment; if I have an account somewhere and forget my password/don't have the recovery email how would going to a computer specialist help? I may be wrong, but I doubt you could recover an account where I know none of the information.

 

[Anarax]

If that had been done on a cloud somehow, none of us would ever have known about it

You would've found it on his hard drive, flash drive or smartphone, someone who uses modern technology that is. That's the point, you can store it in multiple locations opposed to one location. Excluding all the other advantages, that's a huge one alone.

if I have an account somewhere and forget my password/don't have the recovery email how would going to a computer specialist help?

Contact the company your account is with and a specialist can retrieve your information for you