Be kind to those you leave behind

fishandkamp · July 29, 2018, 01:55:09 AM

I received a call yesterday from (Kris's) Ed's wife asking me if I could help her get her new laptop working on their home network. She assured me Ed left a book of secrets that was "supposed" to contain all his passwords, important notes etc. Well I knew from my computer assistance in the past he had at least a couple of laptops, and a couple of desktop computers on their network. Well, he had everyone password protected and NO the passwords in the book were old ones. He even changed the darn password on the router.
Now I am no dummy with computers. My dad was an engineer with Westinghouse and he and I have had every operating system MS has created. I have fixed friends computers for years. I have even returned to college and am studying computers. So I felt confident I would have them singing in no time. WELL it did not quite go that way! It took me about 3 hours to determine reset the router to its default ID and password. Worse I could not figure out his passwords even with the darn book, so I could not access his computers to retrieve that info. I believe that book is seriously out of date. I finally had to call Comcast and get help! No not that! Anyway, after they tried a ton of stuff I got sent to another department and once again (for about the 4 time) Cindy had to verify herself and the account. They finally gave me his password, so at least I got her new computer working. She had some important emails and letters to take care of.
So I realize we never think we are going to pass away, but be kind to those that are left behind. Make sure to leave us some bread crumbs LOL. Seriously, we all realize the spouse will need to have access to things like bank info, titles to cars and boats, etc. but please remember these other issues too.
I assured her I had some "weapons" to assist me at home and I do. I did not expect to need them, but I will return this week with a "special weapon". It is a piece of software that removes passwords and makes some other nifty changes too. I will not be defeated. Of course I will take a copy of Windows 10 and Windows 7 just in case it won't play nice. I am pretty sure he is up there laughing at me, or at least smiling as I help her and her daughter out. I intend to turn one desktop from his main machine into an educational gaming machine for her 5 year old grandson. So if any of you have young kids and can supply me with some good educational game sources I would appreciate it. Believe it or not he has been learning what a keyboard and mouse are in his kindergarten class. They start them early.

Deadeye · July 29, 2018, 08:00:03 AM

Good Info.

I keep a list and keep it current for all my websites and accounts. My wife knows where it is and how to find it.

I do all our bills, so her needing to know is a big deal.

Donald Garner · July 29, 2018, 08:11:25 AM

My wife and I just went through this last week after updating my will. I already have that list made out and both a hard copy and digit.

Bud Kennedy · July 29, 2018, 08:18:47 AM

Thanks for the reminder. this is something that I have been meaning to do but haven't.

D.W. Verts · July 29, 2018, 08:48:46 AM

My wife has been trying to drive me insane for almost twenty-six years. The legal stuff is takin' care of.

I'll let her figure out the rest.

Thornback · July 29, 2018, 09:02:31 AM

Good advice in the op. I try to keep good records in a file and both wife and I know about this. I have also gone through the file with our adult son. I remember once trying to help an 85-year-old uncle with his PC because he had forgotten his password. He kept telling me to try different words and my patience was wearing thin. I finally told him it was useless unless he could remember his password. His answer, "It's in the computer". I ended up just setting up his PC from scratch.

Wizard · July 29, 2018, 09:53:12 AM

I've kept a paper file of every important date, pass words, legal papers, etc. and kept it up to date. I keep it in our bank box and update every two months. It is tedious work but worth it to me. The possibility of my death was always with us and I've kept up the practice in retirement. I feels right to know I've done all I can.

Wizard

Oldfart9999 · July 29, 2018, 10:24:10 AM

Something I need to do with my wife. We have to finish up our Wills and Power of Attorney and we'll be all set.
Rodney

Lipripper · July 29, 2018, 01:37:17 PM

Quote from: Oldfart9999 on July 29, 2018, 10:24:10 AM
Something I need to do with my wife. We have to finish up our Wills and Power of Attorney and we'll be all set.
Rodney

This is something Diana and I need to do also.

fishandkamp · July 29, 2018, 01:57:46 PM

Well fortunately my teacher in my computer class went over some software I can use, but otherwise we would be paying someone or rebuilding these machines from scratch which means loosing all his stuff on them. That is not my intention at all.

Smallie_Stalker · July 29, 2018, 03:01:19 PM

F&K, Sounds like you have a handle on the situation but if you get stuck Google is very useful here. There are tons of videos and articles on resetting windows passwords if you can't remember (or in this case don't know) the old password. There are also free password cracking tools available online.

If push comes to shove you can save all of Kris' stuff from his hard drive using a live Linux CD. It's a little tougher with Windows 10 than earlier version of Windows but it can be done. As before, Google will bring you a lot of information on this.

As for the educational games, Linux has a whole section of games dedicated to education of young children. There is even a Linux distro called Edubuntu geared specifically towards this. If Kris was running Windows 7 on any of his machines it would be a breezze to install this as a dual-boot setup. You would even be able to read the Windows partition from the Linux distro and save and backup the files Kris had on the Windows partition to an external drive or wherever you choose.

Thanks for the reminder as well. I need to start getting certain things in a place where the wife or son can find them if they need them.

fishandkamp · July 29, 2018, 08:31:29 PM

Thanks for the Linux idea. I do have Linux Mint on a thumb drive that I created a while ago. It was for a school project. I may go that way just for fun.
With this thread I was not trying to be morbid, but we are all pretty techie around here, often we forget our family members may not be. As a ham operator I definitely end up in that geek group as most our amateur radios are connected to computers for many tasks such as electronic or digital contact logging
(paper logs are so old school), radio cat control, decoding of digital communication signals etc. I seem to be more of a software geek then ever.

That hobby is just as all encompassing as fishing can be. One can own one rod, sit on the side of a pond and dunk worms, or more likely with almost every member here, it requires a boat, tons of tackle and lots of the latest rods and reels. LOL
That is probably why my outboard eats as much gas as it does. It has to lift and push all that stuff!

Bassinkorea · July 29, 2018, 11:16:55 PM

Good reminder, I should probably get all my ducks in a row also.

SteelHorseCowboy · July 30, 2018, 06:48:59 AM

I learned a little about how hard this can be a while back when my sister went "missing".
Worst part was, being an accountant and having to safeguard so much info for so many clients, she knows about some password security. I was hoping to get into one of her Macs and use it to track her phone.
Best part was, she wasn't missing, her friend is just a pill popping, booze drinking idiot.

Fishandkamp, check out khanacademy.org for the youngster. It's not so much educational gaming, but more a free online school that is fun and interesting. Even if he decides he doesn't like "playing" on it, it can make a great tutoring resource later.

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mygreenihc · July 30, 2018, 08:56:03 AM

FishandKamp,

As a computer nerd by profession, I understand exactly how you feel.

You referenced a "Secret weapon" so I assume that you know how to hack Windows. Windows can be hacked within minutes and it is very simple if you have the correct tools. If you do not have this, let me know and I can get it to you.

As far as passwords, I have a suggestion.

There is a free encrypted database program that I use called KeePass2. You install this and create a database. You simply "Add" a new entry and you can put the URL, the userID, password, and any and all information that you might need to remember about the account. It allows you to put everything for all of your accounts into one encrypted place. The database is one small file so you can copy it to other computers and open it from them, back it up to a flash drive or storage location, or place it on a network somewhere to be accessed by more than one computer. It has a nifty little print function that will print everything out in a format that is very easy to read if you want a hard copy.

Brad

fishandkamp · July 30, 2018, 09:58:54 AM

I intend to use Password Refixer. have you ever used it.

Smallie_Stalker · July 30, 2018, 01:48:25 PM

Quote from: mygreenihc on July 30, 2018, 08:56:03 AM
FishandKamp,

As a computer nerd by profession, I understand exactly how you feel.

You referenced a "Secret weapon" so I assume that you know how to hack Windows. Windows can be hacked within minutes and it is very simple if you have the correct tools. If you do not have this, let me know and I can get it to you.

As far as passwords, I have a suggestion.

There is a free encrypted database program that I use called KeePass2. You install this and create a database. You simply "Add" a new entry and you can put the URL, the userID, password, and any and all information that you might need to remember about the account. It allows you to put everything for all of your accounts into one encrypted place. The database is one small file so you can copy it to other computers and open it from them, back it up to a flash drive or storage location, or place it on a network somewhere to be accessed by more than one computer. It has a nifty little print function that will print everything out in a format that is very easy to read if you want a hard copy.

Brad

Thanks for that info Brad. I use Keepass2 as a password manager bit I wasn't aware it could do all this. I'm gonna look at some online tutorials.

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mygreenihc · July 30, 2018, 08:46:55 PM

Quote from: fishandkamp on July 30, 2018, 09:58:54 AM
I intend to use Password Refixer. have you ever used it.

I have never used Password Refixer. The main one that I use is Hiren's Boot CD. It is actually a Linux boot CD with a pile of utilities of all sorts. It is customizable to allow you to add anything that you want to it. It has several password utilities already on it.

Brad

fishandkamp · July 31, 2018, 09:30:06 AM

That is one my instructor had us download too. The fun thing about Linux is it has no respect for Windows so it lets you do things to Windows that Windows won't. We made my dad's computer a dual boot unit using Linux Mint. Windows saves a portion of the hard drive for a backup that you can not delete and regain that portion for your use. Linux just said okay here it is thank you very much!

Canesfan · August 01, 2018, 08:05:53 AM

My wife and I use 3 or 4 passwords so if push came to shove, could try each one until it "worked ".
As far as the "not trying to be morbid" reference, my wife and I are both funeral directors and you would be surprised at how many people for whatever reason, fear of death, it ain't gonna happen to me, I am going to live forever, etc. , do not tell their survivors what they want done with their bodies when they die. I know it's a touchy subject and one people don't want to think about BUT we can't even count how many families over the years have said ".I hope we're doing the right thing (bury, cremate, etc.) because he/she would never talk about it. And be prepared for sticker shock. Just like everything else, over the years costs do NOT go down. So please prepare or At least let folks know what you want done.

fishandkamp · August 02, 2018, 09:29:22 AM

Canesfan I understand what you are talking about. One of my best friends is in your business. He is another ham radio operator and was also a friend of Eds. What got me was to make a book of secrets and not keep it up to date with your changes.

TNDiver · August 02, 2018, 12:52:25 PM

Good info. I ran into this with a nonprofit I am on the board of and realized I needed to keep all our account info in one place. Wife and I have a list we keep for everything else. But also important to update your beneficiaries on different accounts, especially after a divorce or death.

One thing I need to do is get everything passwords, marriage license, SSN, etc in a fireproof/waterproof box!

fishandkamp · August 06, 2018, 05:16:44 AM

Well good news Isumsoft's Password Refixer worked great! Now I am going to set up the machine so I am the only one with full admin privileges This should assure that his wife's daughter, her older grandson nor a certain 5 year old can barf it up!