A social networking Web site for Americans aged 50-plus went live on Monday -- complete with an online obituary database that sends out alerts when someone you may know dies and that plans to set up a do-it-yourself funeral service.

Instead of career and school sections, Eons.com has interactive games to build brain strength, news on entertainment and hobbies for older people, a personalized longevity calculator and tips to live longer.

It also has a nationwide database of obituaries dating back to the 1930s to which people can add photos and comments.

"The death business is growing," Taylor told Reuters, offering figures showing the number of deaths in the United States rose to 2.4 million in 2005 from 2.2 million in 2000, and was projected to rise to 4.1 million by 2040.

In addition to adding photos and videos to obituaries, members of Eons.com can sign up to receive an alert when someone from a particular area dies or in response to pre-defined keywords such as a company or school name.

First, the wiseass comment.. DeathSter is an idea that's time has come.

This is actually a brilliant idea. I can envision this becoming extremely popular. Current social network sites don't do anything to record history in a useful manor. There is a niche here. Watching the social effects of this will be interesting... 10 years from now, how many boomers will be checking this for their daily dose of death? How many interesting stories and pictures will find their way there, that otherwise would have been lost? How much drama will ensue after someone dies and facts previously known to most start to surface?

I wonder what their troll problem will be like... How many results for "good riddance" will a search bring up?

CNN.com - Site offers death alerts for baby boomers - Aug 1, 2006