You're reading through one of your favorite iVillage message boards and see a message that has a wonderful image at the bottom. It includes the poster's name, their kids' names and their favorite board. Wow. You're amazed at how great this looks. And now, you want one -- but why? A signature can be as simple or complex as you want it. But either way, it's an effective way of letting others know more about you and a great way to customize your messages. Are you still rocking to the Stones? Does Harry Potter rock your socks? Is Heroes keeping you on the edge of your seat? Let the world know!
The Basics
So, just where do you begin? For the purposes of our tutorial, let's consider three signature types: text only, graphic only or a combined text/graphic. No matter which type you prefer, all three can be entered in your Board Settings, under Personal Signature and will appear automatically with each message you post.
If you are using a non-IE based browser, such as Firefox or Safari, your Personal Signature section will look like this:
A Simple Sig
To create a simple text signature, just click inside the signature composition box and type away. If you are using an Internet Explorer browser, you can change your formatting as you type by using the formatting toolbar:
If you are using a non-IE based browser (such as Firefox or Safari), you'll need to use HTML tags/codes to customize your signature:
Both versions will end up looking like this:
Erin
Mom to one great kiddo.
Graphically Enhanced
"Well that's nice," you're thinking, "but I'm more of a flashy gal. I want sparkles, fancy fonts, photos of my family and all that good stuff." Well, worry not! Here's just how you can go about creating one of those fancy signatures.
Your first stop on your sig-blinging quest should be to one of our über fantastic signature/graphic boards. Signature Making for Beginners, Signature Showcase and Creating Websites and Graphics. Each board has great tutorials and a slew of information on how to create your own sig from scratch. And listen up -- they also have board members that will make a signature for you upon request. Can't get much better than that -- the talent of our members is amazing!
If you decide to create your own signature from scratch, it's important to keep the copyrights of the image(s) in mind while searching online. Most image sites list their terms clearly on their site. If you are unsure, contact the site owner. Using copyrighted images without permission to create your signature graphics is against our Terms of Service.
Once your signature is created and saved on your computer, you'll need to upload it to an image hosting site, such as Photobucket. You'll need to grab the code in HTML code/tag format (Photobucket lists it as HTML Tag).
From there, go to your board settings and scroll down to personal signature. Click 'Use your own HTML tags' then paste your HTML code/tag from your image hosting site.
In a non-IE based browser you'll need to make sure the 'contains HTML' box is checked.
Be sure to scroll down and click "Submit" to save your changes!
A Combo Platter
If you'd like to add some text to your graphic signature, you can do so by going back into your Personal Signature and adding any text (or HTML) that you wish! Just remember, whatever add in needs to be hosted online already and/or it needs to be entered using HTML tags (aside from text entered via the WYSIWYG option). Most sites that offer tickers, avatars and/or graphics for free use offer them in multiple formats. Choose HTML and you'll be on your way to showing off that sig!
Things to Keep in Mind
Sigs can be fun and useful tools, but there are a few things to keep in mind:
- The neverending sig: It's second to only the Las Vegas strip in terms of flashing lights and neon signs. The neverending sig can be a deterrent for your fellow boardies, making it difficult to easily follow a discussion or to even load the page, especially for our friends on dial-up. Have fun with expressing yourself in your sig line, but remember the old adage: Less is more. If your sig line takes up the whole page and you're scrolling just to get to the bottom of your own sig, it's too long. Consider rotating in your favorite blinkies and graphics on a regular basis, rather than using your sig line as a storage house.
- The too-graphic graphic: Whether it's text or a graphic, our Terms of Service still apply to signature lines and images posted to the boards. Please don't post obscene, offensive or disruptive images in your signature lines. If your signature violates our Terms of Service, we'll have to remove it and you may end up losing your membership privileges.
- Copyright and Bandwidth: As mentioned above, please make sure you have permission to use images created by others in your sig lines. Using copyrighted images or logos in your sig line may be a violation. Along the same lines, be sure to load your images from a server that allows the use of their server space for images. You may have your own server space, use a service like Photobucket or store your images in your Connect profile. Remote loading of images from servers that do not allow this activity is known as "bandwidth theft".
More Resources
This is just the tip of the siggy iceberg -- there are a lot of ways you can customize your sig line. Be sure to visit these resources, created by iVillage members, for more help and ideas!
