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Technology
Links
Personal Web Sites
What
is a Personal Web Site?
A
Web site is simply a collection of files on a Web server.
A Web server is a computer used for the purpose of housing
web sites and making them available to any requesting computer.
The Web server waits for a Web page request from another
computer. When a file is requested it is sent to the requesting
computer. The browser (software on the requesting computer,
such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Netscape's Navigator,
Mozzila's Firefox, or Opera) assembles the page and displays
it on the monitor or screen.
Personal
Web sites are sites created by individuals to express their
interests or give information about themselves. Web sites
are a visual medium where images are particularly effective
communications tools. Many young people have created personal
Web sites, usually to share with friends rather than parents.
Many Internet Service Providers (ISP’s) provide a
certain amount of web space to their customers. Check with
your ISP to see if this is a service they provide. Click
here for an image of a personal Web site.
The
information for building a simple Web site is readily available
on the Internet. Hosting sites, which provide Web server
space free or for a fee, may
also have automated templates that create a site for you.
Dangers
Just
because your child has a Web site to share personal information
with his or her friends does not mean that the friends are
the only ones who can see this information. Information that
should not be on the Web site:
Name
Telephone number
Street address
E-mail address
Passwords
School
Distinguishing family information
Where a parent is employed
Photos containing identifying information
Photographs are dangerous because they
may reveal personal information to a stranger, such as clues
to your location (i.e. your school may be seen in the background,
team information, local landmark). Great care must
be used when publishing a photograph on a Web page to ensure
that it does not contain identifying information about the
child, the child's family or friends. Online predators can
use the above information to track down a child in just a
few minutes.
Another
danger is copyright infringement. It is very easy to post
material (information, photos, games, etc.) that is copyrighted
and the owner of the material can pursue legal action against
the site owner.
Personal
Web sites can be used as opinion platforms; however, these
can go astray if the topics are hate related or if the language
is offensive. Because the technology provides a non-human
interface, you see only the monitor and touch only the keyboard,
it is easy to underestimate the power of the thoughts and
feelings being shared with countless others on the other
end of the wire. Saying something that is untrue or something
that damages a reputation unfairly can lead to charges of
libel.
