Milo: Why can't I put a pic in my signature since going to Outlook

[Guest]

Hello! I had a picture in my sig file that showed up in all my outgoing
notes in Outlook 2000.

Since going to '03, though, I can put the picture in and even open and close
the "Options" area where I update the signature...but as soon as I close
Outlook and come back, the picture is replaces by an empty rectangle of the
same size with the redXinaSquare icon inside the rectangle.

Why is it losing the picture? Any way I can get this to work again? Thanks.

 

[Milly Staples - [MVP - Outlook]]

How to use the Automatic Picture Download Setting feature to determine how
Outlook 2003 blocks external HTML content:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/831608/en-us

--
Milly Staples - [MVP Outlook]

Post all replies to the news group. Unsolicited mail sent to my
personal address will be deleted without reading.


After furious head scratching, Milo-in-San-Diego
<[email protected]> asked:

| Hello! I had a picture in my sig file that showed up in all my
| outgoing notes in Outlook 2000.
|
| Since going to '03, though, I can put the picture in and even open
| and close the "Options" area where I update the signature...but as
| soon as I close Outlook and come back, the picture is replaces by an
| empty rectangle of the same size with the redXinaSquare icon inside
| the rectangle.
|
| Why is it losing the picture? Any way I can get this to work again?
| Thanks.

 

[Guest]

I am following this thread because I'd like to know the answer to this, too.
I don't know about Milo, but I'm confused by this link about changing html
settings -- I don't think it's what Milo means. (Or if that is the answer to
his question -- which is my question, too -- I'm not sure how to apply the
info in that context.)

I think what he's asking is how to include a .gif or a .jpeg in the
personalized signature that's added to every outgoing message, not how to
insert/view html images in all mail.

It's been awhile since I've used this option, but for a long time (in
Outlook 2000) I had an animated .gif in my signature. While I can't recall
exactly how this was done, I do recall that it was easy to do in the
create/edit-signature tool. While the viewer needed to have html (or rich
text) turned on in his/her email platform, the .gif in my signature was not a
third-party-hosted image -- it actually came w/the message (that I sent) as
an attachment, and appeared in the message because that's where the html code
in the message said it was. If the recipient had his/her platform set to
Plain Text, the image in my signature (and any other image I might have put
in the body of the message, and the rest of my html signature) would appear
to the recipient as an attachment.

But what the recipient's email settings might be have nothing to do with
what ours are, at least in terms of how we choose to build our outgoing
messages. I love this new way 2003 has of handling remotely-hosted graphics
and html differently depending on folders, and I also love that it lets you
choose to download/view pictures on an individual incoming message basis.
But what do those settings have to do with adding a graphic to an html
signature?

When I try to edit the signature in my settings (I do have my mail
composition set to html) I'm redirected to an "outside" html editor (in my
case, notepad). While I'm not totally unfamiliar w/html code, I have no idea
what the code was in Outlook 2000 that directed a message recipient to an
image hosted in the message I sent to him/her (i.e., an image that was, to
the recipient, locally-hosted). Clearly I'm being allowed to build such code
in 2003, but I never had to fool with code (as I recall) in Outlook 2000 when
adding graphics to my signature. The answer posted here may indeed be useful
to me as a recipient, in that I can learn about how to view html in a message
sent to me, but as a message composer, I don't see how it's relevant.

This could be a settings issue -- maybe Milo and I just need to be told how
to change our html editor, or where the setting is that will let Outlook do
the code-building.

Milo, is this what you were asking?

Anyway, Merry Christmas.

 

[Guest]

Mockingbirdbat correctly understood the question that I asked, though I
appreciated from Millie learning how to unset that option because I want pics
to download automatically.

But, yet, I was asking about a pic stored in my sig file that went on every
outgoing note from me, which is not what Millie was addressing.

Mockingbirdbat, the easy was that I (and probably you) did this in 2000 was
simply to drag and drop a picture into the signature while in edit mode of
the signature.

That still works...but only for as long as you're in Outlook '03. As soon
as you leave Outlook and come back, it loses the picture. I'd really like to
fix this if there's something that can be done.

 

[Guest]

Dude! I totally just found a way to do it. It's weird, and I don't think
it's like the way we did it in 2000, but it does work. (It's also entirely
possible that there is an easier way than the one I will now tell you about
-- in which case anyone is welcome to reply and correct me.)

Here is what you can do:

1. Open Outlook
2. Go to Tools - Options - Mail Format
3. Check Use MS Word to edit email
4. Check Use MS Word to read Rich Text Messages
(NOTE: I don't know yet whether checking the second box matters or not.
Further experimentation will clear that up, but for now I'm just telling you
exactly what my settings are, and what I did, because something I did worked.)
5. At the bottom of this same pane, select the account you want the
signature to apply to from the drop-down.
6. Click Signatures
7. Click New
8. Give your sig a name
9. Click Start with a blank signature
10. Click Next
11. Type and format the text of your signature. Don't worry about pictures
for now -- DO NOT click Advanced Edit
12. Click Finish

13. Back in Outlook main screen, go to New (message)
(This is the crazy part that I hope someone can tell us how to bypass)
14. In the new message, go to the Options button. Do not click it!
Instead click that little down-arrow to the right of it that will show you a
dropdown menu. Click on Email Signature.
15. In this Email Options pane, click on Email Signature tab.
16. Choose the signature you have just created from the list.
NOW FOR THE FUN
17. See the format menu under "Create you email signature"? Go to the far
right, to the second-to-last icon, which looks like a little mountain view.
Click on that!!!
18. CHOOSE YOUR PICTURE!!!!!!
19. Click Insert.
20. Choose the email account you want this signature to apply to.
21. Click OK
22. That email message that you used to get to all these options? Close it.
23. Go to New Message again and open a new message. (Make sure you're
using the account you associated with that signature.) You should now see
your signature in the body of the message.

24. Run around screaming.

Merry Christmas, Milo!

15.

 

[Guest]

Before I try all that, have you tried closing outlook and reopening it (ie,
today after having rebooted) to be sure it still works?

As I said, the old simple way still does appear to work...until you leave
Outlook.

Also, will I have to remain in Word edit mode for it to keep working?
Because, for other reasons related to signatures, I don't want to be in word
mode.

Thanks for all the time you put into this! - MiloForImprov at hoTm@il
dot com

 

[Guest]

Hi, Milo!

Oh yes, I have several times both closed Outlook and rebooted since I made
my signature with the logo. It's still there in all outgoing messages when I
use the associated account.

I don't actually know if you *have* to be using Word as your editor, the way
I had my settings configured. If I get a minute, I'll try running through
the whole thing again with that option unchecked, and I'll let you know what
happens.

Yeah -- I have no idea why your system is doing what it's doing; it does
seem frustrating to be able to add a graphic but then have it not stick (it
seems more logical that it wouldn't let you do it in the first place). The
caveat to my solution is there might indeed be a way to do it without using
every single step I went through -- I was totally winging it, because I'm new
to 2003. And there's no need to thank me for going taking all that time --
it was just a happy coincidence that I saw your message while I'm in the
middle of configuring all XP/2003 programs on my new computer, and your issue
was one of my own issues.

Good luck, and if you find a better way to do it, please do post it; I'd
love to know a simpler solution.

--KK

 

[Guest]

As there's a lot of steps there, can I ask you to try turning off Word as the
editor...close...reopen...and see if the picture still works?

If it does, I'll jump right onto those steps you suggest.
Yes there may be an easier way, but so far, only you've been willing to try.
;0)

Happy new year!

(Sorry it took so long to reply...I didn't get a note about your posting)
===========================