Oh Homer, how do you make those fancy signature graphics?

[Homer]

NOTE: I do NOT make signatures or have a "signature shop" of sorts. However, this forum has an abundance of signature shops full of people willing to make banners for you.

 

Over the past few days, I've received several PM's regarding my signature:

 

Hey, i noticed your signature, and i was wandering how did you make that top ten ride list?

=]

 

You have a "slide show" per say in you sig. How do you do this and can you help me?

 

...and so on...

 

So, on to Homer's "Guide to a Tricked Out Signature."

 

1. Programs

 

There are several programs out there for editing images that are WAY better than your simple little "Paint" program that's bundled with Windows. Sure, there are fancypants professional programs like Adobe Photoshop that are extremely expensive or you could go for a simpler program that I feel is more accessible to the general public than Adobe Photoshop (and is free).

 

The program I primarily use is Paint.NET, which is basically a dumbed down version of Photoshop (and is free). You can download it here:

http://www.getpaint.net/

 

If you're wondering how I "made my 'slide show'," the proper term for that would be ".GIF." A .GIF file is basically a series of images all into one file that slides through. For those of you wanting an animated .GIF program, I use a simple program called "Microsoft GIF Animator." You can get it here (for free):

http://www.jhepple.com/gif_animator.htm

 

2. Making the Banner

 

Most forums have signature restrictions for banner images. I usually keep my banners at 350 pixels by 100 pixels. I'll add more in this section later.

 

3. Saving

 

Once your done, save the image (File -> Save As) as a .JPG image. If you're making a .GIF 'slide show', save it as a .GIF file.

 

3a. "Making a GIF/'Slide Show'"

 

Once you made a series of images (each of them saved as 'filename.GIF'), start up Microsoft GIF Animator. At this time, put your images into the program in whatever order you want. After that, click the "3-floppy disk icon" to save it and voila, you have made a "slide show signature."

 

4. Putting it in your signature

4a. Hosting

 

First thing to get your banner out there on the net is by hosting it on an image host. I use http://imageshack.us , but almost any other image hosting site will do.

 

4b. Putting it in your signature at the forums

 

But how did you put gif in your signature? I'm just not adept enough to figure out the image tags set up. Any help would be appreciated.

 

By putting the "Img" tags around the URL (which is the "http://www.themeparkreview.com/image.JPG" ) Simply put, wrap the Img tags around it like so:

[img=http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/6498/coastercountji2.png]

 

The end result should be THIS:

 

I think this wraps it up for now. If there are any other questions, reply in here, but please do not PM me.

[odie]

Hey this was very helpful, and I think I did it!

 

I used Google for my logo is there a better place to get them? Also, I used the gradient tool to blend it in, is there a better or easier way to do that?

 

Edit: How do you re-size yours so nice?

[Homer]

^In order to resize an image, go up to Image > Resize. It does a good job sizing down images, but "blowing them up", not so good.

 

Also, for good looking images, in Paint.NET, be sure to keep "Maintain Aspect Ratio" ON!

[Eric_Smith]

Thank you so much. I have always wondered how you do that. I hope to have my top 5 up real soon.

[odie]

Ok, thank you, but were do you get your ride logos and how do you blend them into the background?