# Setting for increasing size of avatars? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [May 20, 2024, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814 "2024-05-20T16:10:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/1 "2024-05-20T16:10:50Z")
Someone today gently mocked me for my avatar, thinking it was a guppy of all things. Obvious in the original-sized pic that it was a falcon, but yeah all tiny I can see the reason for the confusion. So any way to make them bigger? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/2 "2024-05-20T16:19:08Z")
I can see it’s a bird of prey of some sort. It’s just as easy on the mobile version. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/3 "2024-05-20T16:20:04Z")
That’s because I just changed it this morning. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/4 "2024-05-20T16:43:39Z")
As my understanding is the SDMB chose the avatar size, I’m moving this to #About This Message Board from #Site Feedback. I don’t know the details, but I believe the mod staff led by **TubaDiva** at the time of conversion played with those settings and decided on the current size. It is possible the size would be revisited, but I doubt we would go much bigger. I wouldn’t be against up to maybe double the size, but I’m just one voice. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/5 "2024-05-20T18:42:50Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > I can see it’s a bird of prey of some sort. It’s just as easy on the mobile version. It’s still not obvious to me. I’m not all that worried about it; I just don’t usually pay attention to the avatars. If I’m trying to find somebody’s posts in a thread, a vague idea what the avatar looks like is good enough for that. But if you’re trying to tell me something by your choice of avatar: on me, it’s not working. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/6 "2024-05-20T18:50:02Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > But if you’re trying to tell me something by your choice of avatar: on me, it’s not working. - Since he said it’s a falcon, he’s likely saying he’s a Millennial. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/7 "2024-05-20T19:14:25Z")
I wouldn’t want them bigger. Avatars should be small splashes of color, and getting something distinctive into a small space is part of the point. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/8 "2024-05-20T20:04:03Z")
Seconded, but for other reasons: I think the text of the post shouldn’t be distraced by visual clutter. Avatars _should_ be small splashes of color. We’ve spent nigh on tweny-some-odd years without avatars . . . If people want to see bigger versions of your avatar than what appears on _this_ page, they can click on it, or can find your user summary–or is that what you’re aiming to ‘embiggen’? Tripler (Insert appropriate curmudgeonly lawn-getting-off statement here). ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/9 "2024-05-20T20:25:03Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Since he said it’s a falcon, he’s likely saying he’s a Millennial. Nope, born 1962. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/10 "2024-05-20T20:27:08Z")
You’ve been wooshed by a Corellian light freighter. 😉 In any case, I think your avatar is pretty clearly a bird. You certainly have a few pixels of room to zoom it in if you so desired, but I think it’s fine. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/11 "2024-05-20T20:42:10Z")
> [@Tripler](#): > > If people want to see bigger versions of your avatar than what appears on _this_ page, they can click on it, or can find your user summary Sometimes I still can’t figure it out. If I click on yours, it looks something like a lamp that’s fallen over onto its side. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/12 "2024-05-20T21:12:15Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > If I click on yours, it looks something like a lamp that’s fallen over onto its side. To me, it looks like a bomb. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/13 "2024-05-20T21:31:11Z")
That’s a clever way to avoid calling Tripler out as a Fat Man. > **[Fat Man](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fat_Man)** > > "Fat Man" (also known as Mark III) was the codename for the type of nuclear weapon the United States detonated over the Japanese city of Nagasaki on 9 August 1945. It was the second of the only two nuclear weapons ever used in warfare, the first being Little Boy, and its detonation marked the third nuclear explosion in history. It was built by scientists and engineers at Los Alamos Laboratory using plutonium from the Hanford Site, and one was dropped from the Boeing B-29 Superfortress Bocksc... ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/14 "2024-05-20T21:32:29Z")
> [@gnoitall](#): > > That’s a clever way to avoid calling Tripler out as a Fat Man. Is that what it is? I’ve heard of the thing by that name, but have no idea what it looked like. ETA: if that’s it, it’s a pretty unnerving thing to have as an avatar. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/15 "2024-05-20T21:33:37Z")
The Wiki article has a black-and-white photo. I don’t think Mark III nuclear bombs were ever painted khaki, but who knows? As to “unnerving”, @Tripler was a bomb disposal tech, so on-brand and perhaps less intimidating for them than for others. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/16 "2024-05-20T21:35:49Z")
> [@gnoitall](#): > > I don’t think Mark III nuclear bombs were ever painted khaki You’re seeing khaki? I’m seeing yellow with green bands. > [@gnoitall](#): > > As to “unnerving”, @Tripler was a bomb disposal tech, so on-brand and perhaps less intimidating for them than for others. Ah. Yes, less unnerving in that context. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/17 "2024-05-20T22:02:09Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > Sometimes I still can’t figure it out I completely dig it. There are a few avatars that are confusing, and there’s a [recent thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misinterpreted-avatars/1001578/) on it. > [@gnoitall](#): > > I don’t think Mark III nuclear bombs were ever painted khaki, but who knows? The original first couple were, and then production units switched to olive drab. > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > Ah. Yes, less unnerving in that context Yep, I am retired from the EOD career field. My previous avatar, the [explosives placard](https://www.grainger.com/product/9LJ07), was ‘on the books’ for awhile and I wanted to update it. In the past few years, I"ve moved onto things “less conventional.” Tripler I like the fallen lamp, though. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/18 "2024-05-20T22:11:34Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Since he said it’s a falcon, he’s likely saying he’s a Millennial. Haha, zing! You shot first with the pun. On my PC I can tell that it’s a bird but I could see with the weird angle and the curvature of the top wing it might look like a fish. Finding an avatar that looks recognizable when shrunk down is a challenge. Half of the avatars on this site are something I can’t understand unless I click on them and see it blown up. You don’t want something too busy or complicated because it won’t translate well when shrunk down. I’ve done web design in the past (and still do it somewhat today for my agency) and one feature that used to be a big deal (not so much anymore) is a favicon. The little icon that appears next to the web page address on some web browsers and also will be next to the entry if you save it as a favorite (hence the name, favorite+icon=favicon). Coming up with a picture that works when small is very important then too. I tried to set an avatar that works when small for myself, and I think it was successful, but who knows. It looks fine to me but I know what it’s supposed to look like, so it’s hard for me to judge objectively. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2024, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/19 "2024-05-20T22:16:27Z")
IMHO, when avatars are ineffective it’s because they’re too complex for the limited space and it’s hard to make out what they’re supposed to represent. It’s usually because the poster is too focused on some image that they like without considering how it will look in a postage-stamp size. One solution is to zoom in on some meaningful part of the image rather than trying to represent the whole thing. Another approach is to just go with something less detailed and more abstract to just convey an idea rather than a detailed image, which is the basis of many corporate logos. My avatar represents my beloved dog, but although I have many wonderful pictures of him, this drawing works better in an avatar than any actual image precisely because it eliminates details and emphasizes the essential elements. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2024, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814/20 "2024-05-21T01:15:59Z")
Interesting note I just observed . . . my ‘old’ avatar seems to live on in quotations that happened before I updated to Fat Man. Case in point in early posts in [this thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-public-available-charging-of-electric-vehicles-work/999613/2) (seems to show the orange placard for _me_) Tripler Does Discourse store old avatars? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/setting-for-increasing-size-of-avatars/1001814.md?page=2)