Managing memories

By DAVE KANE - MyGeneration, NZ Herald
07/12/2009

My father has an incredible memory and has archived a whole range of fascinating family stories. Sadly, his storage device is the round object on his shoulders.

Spurred on by this, I researched ways to use technology to manage such memories, and discovered a website called 'myheartwill.com'.

The concept for the website was inspired by Jill Margo and her daughter Emily's small book, Living On.  It suggested a new kind of will beyond legalities and the bequeathing of material goods.  It was about passing on a 'heart will' of emotional wealth: feelings, memories, hopes, beliefs and experiences.

When media entrepreneur John Barnett heard about hte booking he was taken with the concept and wondered: "Once an emotional legacy is created, how can it be protected?  How can its content be kept safe and secure?  And how can one be certain it's seen by ionly those it's intended for?"

Barnett recognised ;the need for an online mechanism to enable such content to endure and from there, myheartwill.com was born.

The website if fully secure and the information on your personalised site can only be seen by people you give access to.  You won't be bombarded by people wanting to be your 'heartwill friend' or online advertising.

A look at the website will certainly start you thinking about what stories, photos or video clips will make up your legacy.

- DAVE KANE