User Profile A user profile consists of specific data, some of which is relatively static and some of which is dynamic, relating to individual users. An example of relatively static data is a user's home address that is stored for access throughout the Web site. Dynamic data may consist of the interests, preferences or statistical measures specific to a user. This dynamic profile data is to a certain extent specific to the application a user is accessing. Because of this, it is advantageous for sites to store the common static or address-type data in a central database location and the dynamic application data with each application.
Sites can provide any level of personalization when leveraging custom attributes for each user.
Using the static global data in the user profile, applications can pre-fill many repetitive forms for users, or not show them at all. Consistent global data helps eliminate duplication of effort and provides application consistency across the Web site. Hospitals with high-performance master person indexes may be able to leverage their centralized patient information in this context. Static user data can also be used to determine other informal user groupings, such as by age, gender or geographic location. The dynamic data in the user profile represents a common area of frustration for many Web site producers and developers.