WPW Avatar Rules (8/20/07)

MarkGatESS · #1 (**permalink**) 08-21-2007, 09:53 AM

I received my usual WebProWorld e-mail newsletter as I always do. However, with the latest one (August 20th edition) I was hit with the first paragraph posted by Rafael regarding forum rules violation stated as such:

Quote:

Before I get started today, I would like to remind our new members that only pictures of yourself, not animals or graphics, are allowed as your avatar. I'm seeing more and more people doing this, and in doing so, breaking our rules. Those of you who are doing this: please take down those pictures and use real pictures of yourself If it continues to get worse we will have to take away the rights of users to post their own photos.

Since I was one of those that used an avatar of a cartoon character instead of a photo, I decided 1) to take it down (no avatar) and 2) go view the forum rules. In the link that Rafael gave in the newsletter, the forum rules had this:

Image Restrictions:
- Unless otherwise stated, if you post an image in the forums, please keep the image size under 50K, and preferably under 300 x 300 pixels
- All member photos must be of you

Now, since the rules didn't specify "avatar" just "member photos", I decided to go searching for anything regarding avatars. Since there was nothing in the WebProWorld Forum Rules regarding this, the only other place I could find was in the FAQ page which had the following under "How do I get a picture under my username?" in the "User Maintenance" section of the FAQ:

These small images are called Avatars. They are displayed below your username on all posts that you make. There are two kinds of avatars: those provided by the administrator and those that you upload yourself.

If the administrator has provided a set of avatars, and avatars are enabled, you may select an avatar that best describes your personality.

The administrator may also have enabled custom avatars, which allows you to upload an avatar image from your computer.

Avatars are small graphical images that you may choose in your profile. They are displayed by your user name on all posts that you make. You can select the image that best describes yourself from your profile options.

Again, I see no reference between the two that a photo of yourself is the ONLY approved avatar that can be used. I can only come to the following possible conclusions:

Rafael made a mistake when stating that anything other than your personal photo can't be used as an avatar - either deliberately or a typo (saying "avatar" instead of "photo" in reference to one's personal photo)
I have made a mistake and haven't read the EXACT line that states that avatars have to be the user's photo - in which case please post a link to where this rule is stated
Rafael does NOT like people using characters and other assorted graphics as an avatar and would prefer people using a photo of themselves

Please, if some authority of WebProWorld could clarify this, I would greatly appreciate it since I am now quite confused as to what is or is not allowed regarding avatars.

**rah** · #2 (**permalink**) 08-21-2007, 11:00 AM

Avatars are member photos. The term “member photos” came from way back when WebProWorld first started. We were trying to make things a little more personal, so that's why they are called member photos and not avatars. I will update the rules to be more specific.

The reason for using pictures of our members, instead of characters/graphics, is to better give a since of community. It makes things easier when you can actually relate a face to a username. I know this is a problem for some, but the majority seem to like it.

I hope this helps clear things up for you.

**ctabuk** · #3 (**permalink**) 08-21-2007, 11:02 AM

An Avatar is a much used word in the forums - If a poster reads (as they should) the rules - then it should be a photograph of yourself -even if tinged green

I wonder who that could be

.

We do have a submit photo section - And we mods can now delete a 'avatar/photo' if unsuitable.

So - in this forum avatar means -your pic.

Thanks

**wige** · #4 (**permalink**) 08-21-2007, 11:26 AM

Although, technically there are two photos. There is one that only appears on your profile, and a second picture that is put beside your posts. I think this may be where some of the confusion comes in. According to the forum software, the picture on your profile is called a "member photo" and the picture that appears next to your posts is called an "avatar" (See your control panel, Change Member Photo and Change Avatar sections) so being more personable not withstanding, the two terms should probably be not used interchangeably. Especially since the two terms mean different things. A "member photo" is a photo of a member, while an "avatar" is defined as a graphical representation of a person, typically a virtual or idealized representation.

If the intention, or even the standards or rules, of both of these images are the same, perhaps they should be merged to a single photo that would be used on the profile and beside posts?

**mike** · #5 (**permalink**) 08-21-2007, 02:18 PM

The avatar is your member photo. The ruls/policy needs to be updated probably. This forum used to be powered by phpBB, which only used the 1 member image. vBulletin has an avatar and a separate image for your profile page.

I don't particularly care I suppose what people use for their profile page, but our policy has always been that the avatar or user image that appears by your posts be a real picture.

MarkGatESS · #6 (**permalink**) 08-21-2007, 02:42 PM

Thanks for clarifying this. I'm glad that you're looking into updating your rules so that this will be made clear to all who use this forum.

As for me, I guess I'll keep mine blank because I really, REALLY hate having my photo "publically available". I'm not trying to be insulting or snobbish, it's just a personal preference of mine that I don't want to post my mug if I don't have to.

Again, thanks for clearing things up.

**wige** · #7 (**permalink**) 08-21-2007, 04:43 PM

I agree with Mark, I prefer not having my picture posted around the web, and I have an avatar that I use for most forums (I deleted it from my profile page here) which fits with my posts, and gives me something of a universal identity but maintains my anonymity.

emptymirror · #8 (**permalink**) 08-21-2007, 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ctabuk

An Avatar is a much used word in the forums - If a poster reads (as they should) the rules - then it should be a photograph of yourself -even if tinged green

I wonder who that could be

.

We do have a submit photo section - And we mods can now delete a 'avatar/photo' if unsuitable.

So - in this forum avatar means -your pic.

Thanks

It's funny because there is a place in the CP to upload a "member photo" and ALSO for an avatar, suggesting they are 2 separate things. Perhaps this should be changed.

I do not want to post a photo of myself as I've been the subject of an online stalker before, and for security reasons don't want folks to know what I look like in the real world.

I just removed my totally innocuous (photo of guitar) avatar over this. But I'm not happy about it.

Denise

**incrediblehelp** · #9 (**permalink**) 08-22-2007, 08:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ctabuk

even if tinged green

I wonder who that could be

.

hmmmmmmmmmm

**mike** · #10 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 02:55 PM

The easy solution is to not post an avatar image at all if you're worried about people knowing what you look like for whatever reason.

An avatar is not compulsory.