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Showing Your Personality With Display Images

Selecting and Sharing Your Display ImageWorking With Your AvatarControlling Your Display Image During Messaging

Selecting and Sharing Your Display Image

You’re a flower in spring, a studious coed, a traveling vagabond, a display image. Wait. A display image? Well, that’s actually what we call the picture you use to portray yourself to your contacts, so you can be a spring flower, a coed, or pretty much whatever you like.

Your display image can be a picture or an avatar. An avatar is a character that you create and personalize to convey your own unique personality. You decide what you want your display image to be.

Tip: You can’t share display images with Windows Live™ Messenger contacts.

 

Here’s How

  1. In the Messenger window, click Messenger, then select My Display Image from the menu.

    The Display Image window opens. If this is the first time you’ve opened this window, you’ll see examples of what your picture or avatar can be; otherwise, you’ll see your current picture and avatar choices.

  2. In the window, select a picture or avatar to share.

    • To select and share a picture:

      • Click the Select button in the Share my picture area.

        Click the Select button.

        The pictures window opens.

      • Select a picture from the list, or browse for one on your computer, then click the OK button.

        Select a picture from the list or browse for a picture.

        Tip: Choose any picture with a file extension of .bmp, .jpg, .png, or .gif.

        Click the OK button.

        Your selected picture appears in the display image window.

        Your selected picture.

      • Click the Share my picture option, then click the OK button.

    • To create and share an avatar:

      • Click the Customize button in the Share my avatar area.

        Click the Customize button.

        The Avatars web page appears.

      • Follow the online instructions to customize your avatar by changing its clothes, hair, skin color, background, and more.
      • Save your changes before closing the browser window.

        Your avatar appears in the display image window.

      • Click the Share my Avatar option, then click the OK button.

    Your display image appears in your Messenger window and in your friends’ Messenger Lists.

 

What’s Next

If you don’t want to share a display image, click the Don’t share a display image option at the top of the display image window.

Click the Don’t share a display image option.

 

Help Topics

 
 

Words to Know

  • Contact: a person with whom you interact; someone to whom you might want to send an email, instant message, or text message.
  • Windows Live™ Messenger: Microsoft® Windows’ free instant messaging application.