All About Me

Some people don’t wish to join a social networking site like MySpace or FaceBook, but prefer to have many of the same types of information collected on a personal website of their own. This may be because networking is not their purpose, because they’re into website design and wish to have more control than social networking sites offer, or because they want to have types of content that don’t work ideally in the social network setting. These sites might include:

• a short bio
• a list of friends with links to their sites
• photographs from trips, events, and everyday life
• other life details: favorite celebrities, television shows, bands
• a résumé
• messages or a blog

All About You

Fan sites that focus on a celebrity’s accomplishments and life are another type of personal website. Some of these grow into a business, but others just stay as a smaller tribute of appreciation and good feeling.

Family Website

A family personal website offers a locale where extended and distant family members can gather and share. The site can be used to plan and commemorate events such as family reunions as well as personal accomplishments and milestone celebrations of interest to all.

Résumé Website

People searching for employment as well as people who characteristically work freelance may have a site to showcase their talents and skills in the hopes of getting hired. These personal websites may serve as virtual portfolios of previous work, showing accomplishments to date and—given the ability to attach video, audio, and graphic files, as well as text—they can provide prospective employers with a multimedia introduction to a potential hire, before they even meet. Added instant messaging and e-mail information would allow potential employers to make contact and arrange an interview.

College and University professors sometimes have personal websites which often contain a résumé not in order to seek work but as documentation of who the person is. These sites may also include a bibliography, as well as some published papers or other evidence of the person’s accomplishments. Some also have sections that relate to family or hobbies.

Hobby Website

This type of personal website may be used to either showcase or develop a hobby, as well as to link to others with similar interests, and direct them to resources that may be of use. It is not unusual for a group of enthusiasts with the same hobby to form a webring to link their sites and make it easy for like-minded folks to find and join them. If you do not have time to create a website, there are plenty of sites that sell website properties. You can buy a website and get started right away.