In the '90s we used to put public info there, kind of like a blog. The .project and .plan files (what we were working on and what we planned to work on, work or life-related), PGP key, geek code, etc.

Some people put their work contact information (not many), but the '90s were a very different time, specially before the Eternal September, and publishing contact info like a phone or email was not too big of a deal back then (remember the white pages).

Of course, finger is now just a curiosity from the past, considering its security issues and that the most healthy way of using the internet now is not to show yourself but to hide yourself the best you can.