Former president Roh Moo-hyun, who died Saturday, left a suicide note on his computer instead of writing it by hand -- evidence that a love of computers that his aides have often spoken about was with him to the last. While in office, Roh invented an electronic document management system called "e-Jiwon" (digital knowledge park), which he instructed all Cheong Wa Dae staff to use.

Roh was one of the five inventors of e-Jiwon, which was patented in 2006. He "used to get up at 5 a.m. and was the first to turn on the computer and read reports on e-Jiwon every morning," a former Cheong Wa Dae official said.

It was at 5:21 a.m. on the day of his death that he began writing his suicide note. He must have sat down at the computer right after he got up, just as he had done every day while in office.

Roh was the first Korean politician who came to power by taking advantage of the Internet, which had spread rapidly since the early 2000s. His supporters exchanged views and expanded their support base online. Experts speculate that the Internet came to his rescue with its quick spread and influence during times of crisis, such as the collapse of his coalition with rival presidential candidate Chung Mong-joon at the last moment during the 2002 presidential election and the impeachment motion against him in 2004.

Even after he left office, Roh enjoyed raising issues and debating them on his homepage and a website called "Democracy 2.0," which he had opened. When it emerged that he had taken a bribe from wealthy supporter Park Yeon-cha, he posted a message online saying, "I apologize... Please forget me."

His love of computers was related to his inventive propensity. When he prepared for a bar exam in the 1970s, he obtained a patent by inventing an improved version of a reading stand with which he could read books from any angle he wanted. Former presidential spokesman Yoon Tae-young said in 2004, "President Roh thinks ceaselessly if there is anything that he can change. It's not that he dreams of being an inventor, but that invention is his nature or instinct."