Avatar image size limit

[i]

Any chance this could be changed?

 

[blakerwry]

how big do you want it?


I think the size limit is an attempt at keeping the site readable. If someone is using an avatar that is excessively large it might throw off the rest of the page.


I believe the on site avatars limit is 80x80, howeer you can host your own avatar off-site that is larger (im not sure how much larger)

 

[Handruin]

The other size limit pertains to file size. There are two factors behind this, one being the speed of the forum, and second, the amount of disk space used on the server.

blakerwry is correct by stating the avatar must be 80x80 and under 6k in size if hosted by SF. If you host your own avatar, the dimensions and size are not constrained.

What would you like the constraints to be changed to?

 

[i]

Hmm ... yes, sorry about that: I should have been more clear. It's not the physical dimensions I was asking about (80 x 80 seems perfect to me), it was the size of the resulting file I was wondering about.

The current limit is 6k ... would 60k be too much? That would allow for some more interesting animated avatars.

 

[Fushigi]

The current limit is 6k ... would 60k be too much? That would allow for some more interesting animated avatars.

I would have to say that 60K is way too large. Those among us who are still tied to 56K modems for access would spend 11-12 seconds downloading a single avatar of that size. 6K only takes about 1 - 1.3 seconds and is acceptable. Keep in mind that on a large thread, 12+ avatars may need to be downloaded.

My opinion is that any avatar that can be downloaded over a 56K modem in 2 seconds or less would be fine. So, up to 10-12K would probably be fine. A well-tuned graphic can do a lot in that amount of space.

- Fushigi

 

[Tannin]

I would be reluctant to lend support to any increase in the size limit. Make the limit bigger, and the avatars will get bigger, you can be quite certain of that. Several times I've hit the file size limit when making an avatar and had to re-examine my file format (PNGs can be terrible sometimes) to make the avatar fit. If I hadn't hit the limit, I would not have bothered. Multiply me by a few hundred members, multiply each member by a few hundred posts and you have a serious bandwidth waste.

It's not just modem users either: I'm on cable but I still pay per MB. In any case, animation (while cute) can also be an eyesore. Think of the 6k limit as a challenge.

In short, while there is a case for bigger file sizes, I think the case for no change is a good deal stronger.

 

[i]

Ok. I really was just asking ... my connection is so good that I can't tell if any change would be slow or not.

Multiply me by a few hundred members...

I eagerly await the day that there are a few hundred real (as in not related to multiple personality disorders) members here. :wink:

 

[blakerwry]

well.... im sure the images will be cached and after you have seen a majority of the recent posts most members' avatars should be cahced so you wont have to (1) waste bandwidth (2) waste time, but you might have to (3) put up with tannin's silly animations.

 

[blakerwry]

 

[Tannin]

:evil:

 

[Fushigi]

well.... im sure the images will be cached and after you have seen a majority of the recent posts most members' avatars should be cahced so you wont have to (1) waste bandwidth (2) waste time, but you might have to (3) put up with tannin's silly animations.

Actually, Tannin's silly animation is only 780 bytes. 8)

That said, while the images should be cached, on my systems they do seem to re-load from the server quite frequently. I haven't done any measurements or tracking of it, but if I had to guess, I'd say the graphics (logo, emoticons, avatars, read/unread, etc.) seem to stay cached just for the session & not indefinitely. I have 23-30MB devoted to cache (depending on which system), which should be sufficient considering my browsing habits & frequency @ SF. I rarely clear the cookies or delete the 'Temporary internet files'.

- Fushigi

 

[blakerwry]

yes, well done animation. I like the challenge of trying to fit an image into as little bytes as possible...

Photoshop's "save for web" feature makes that task alot easier and convenient.... kinda takes the fun out of it...

 

[Clocker]

Fushigi

IE (if you're using it) can be configured to clear the cache after each browser session or not. If you want to keep your cached stuff, you might want to make sure it isn't clearing the cache after each session is closed.

C

 

[Fushigi]

Fushigi

IE (if you're using it) can be configured to clear the cache after each browser session or not. If you want to keep your cached stuff, you might want to make sure it isn't clearing the cache after each session is closed.

C

Clocker,

Thanks for the tip. I am in fact using IE 6 and just checked the settings: Tools - Internet Options - Advanced - "Empty Temporary Internet Files folder when browser is closed". This setting is not checked on either PC so I shouldn't be auto-clearing the cache unless IE is lying, but of course a Microsoft product would never misrepresent the truth.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks,
Fushigi