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Showing Your Personality With Display Images

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

Working With Your Avatar

An avatar is a graphical character that you can personalize and share with your contacts. It displays in your contact’s Messenger List and in her conversation window while the two of you are instant messaging. You can customize your avatar by changing its clothes, hair, skin color, background, and more to fit your mood and personality on any given day.

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

 

Here’s How

  1. Begin customizing your avatar in one of the following ways:

    • Near the top of your Messenger window, right-click your display image to the left of your name, then select Customize My Yahoo! Avatar from the menu.

      Select Customize My Yahoo! Avatar from the menu.

    • In a conversation window, if your avatar is visible, right-click it, then select Customize My Yahoo! Avatar.

      Right-click your avatar in the conversation window, then select Customize My Yahoo! Avatar from the menu.

    The Yahoo! Avatar web page opens.

  2. Change your avatar’s appearance by changing its clothes, hair, skin, background, and more.

  3. Save your changes before closing the browser window.

    If you share your avatar, all of your open conversation windows update immediately to show your new image.

    Tip: Your contacts must have display images enabled to see your avatar.

 

What’s Next

Your avatar or picture appears next to the input area of your conversation windows as well as in the Messenger windows of your contacts (for those with images enabled).

 

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.
  • Conversation: an exchange of instant messages between you and a contact.
  • Display image: a picture or avatar that represents you in some way and that you share with your contacts during IM conversations.
  • Messenger List: the main part of the Contact List in Yahoo! Messenger. The Messenger List includes the contacts with whom you communicate most often.
  • Windows Live™ Messenger: Microsoft® Windows’ free instant messaging application.