# Sig size **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [December 22, 2000, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sig-size/46896 "2000-12-22T19:43:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2000, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sig-size/46896/1 "2000-12-22T19:43:08Z")
How much space to sigs take up on the board? Is the sig copied with each post, or is it stored in a db file and relicated only on the browser? * * * Sig withheld to save space? ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2000, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sig-size/46896/2 "2000-12-22T20:10:45Z")
The latter. Sigs are stored serverside, flagged on the message, and pulled up from the server when a page is loaded. As a result, when you change your sig, it changes globally, on all your previously sigged posts. ---
**Author:** ![Ol\_io](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/65b543/32.png) [@Ol\_io](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ol_io)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2000, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sig-size/46896/3 "2000-12-23T00:17:48Z")
Sometimes you don’t get a sig. I think there must be a limit, like once per thread. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecccb3/32.png) [@Lord\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Jim)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2000, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sig-size/46896/4 "2000-12-23T00:59:53Z")
**OI io** , there isn’t a limit. It is the choice of the poster. Instead of cluttering the thread with a long sig over and over, many posters add their sig once per thread then don’t use it afterwards. Jim ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2000, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sig-size/46896/5 "2000-12-23T18:12:51Z")
Also I will mention that the staff of the SDMB may request you to change your signature if in our estimation the signature is so long that it’s distracting. There is no hard and fast rule on the length of the signature, so, as in many other cases, the decisions may not be perfectly consistent. I can guarantee this however: if your signature includes the full text of _War and Peace_, you **will** be asked to change it.[sup]1[/sup] [sup]1[/sup] And if some joker reads my post and decides to try putting the full text of a long novel in their signature for comic effect, rest assured that I personally **will** go over to their house and wash their keyboard out with soap. * * * moderator, «[**Straight Dope Message Board**](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/index.php)» ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2000, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sig-size/46896/6 "2000-12-23T18:49:08Z")
Sigh…