Home Page Themes

Home page themes are themes that alter the style and look of your MySpace homepage. There are currently 18 to choose from, from ice-cream themes to army patterns.

To select a new theme simply click the "Page Themes" link at the top right corner of the home page.

A small section should open up displaying the themes. You can then browse through the themes clicking the arrows at the bottom. To preview the theme just click on the thumbnail and then press "Save" if it's the one you want.

Image Hosting

To place a picture in your MySpace profile, but not in your albums, you need the help of an image hosting website. These websites convert picture files from your computer into html code which allows you to put them on MySpace. Some also allow you to change the size of the picture, create albums with all uploaded photos and browse through all images uploaded onto that website. These sites are fairly easy to use and most load quite quick, however larger and more detailed images take longer to load.

Websites range from simple sites that allow you to upload and resize (www.picoodle.com) to sites that you must create an account for but offer more features (www.photobucket.com).

Once you're at the uploading form all you have to do is browse your computer for the image you want and choose whether or not you want to resize it. 

Then click "Upload". It will then load for a bit before giving you the codes. 

To put the picture onto your MySpace profile go into 'edit mode' and paste the code where you want the picture to appear.

Adsense on MySpace?

You cannot put advertising on your MySpace using Google's Adsense feature. Firstly, it's against MySpace's terms and conditions and secondly Adsense uses Javascript, which isn't compatible with MySpace.

YouTube embedding

Embedding YouTube videos onto your Myspace profile is easy! All you have to do is when watching the video on YouTube, copy (right click then Copy) the embed code from the text box on the right hand side of the page.



Then go back to your Myspace homepage. Click "Edit Profile" then paste (right click then Paste) the code where you want it to appear.



You can change the size of the video by editing the width and height numbers in the code. Make sure you keep the same ratio though or else you will have large black areas on the sides of your video.

Bulletins

Bulletins are messages that are sent to all of the people on your friends list. Instead of receiving notifications that they have received a bulletin, it will appear on the bulletin board on their homepage along with your name, the date and time you posted it and the title of the bulletin. All of your and your friends bulletins will appear on your bulletin board and to read them simply click on their title.

To post a new bulletin just click the "post bulletin" link in the bottom right corner of the bulletin board. You can delete bulletins you have posted by viewing it then clicking the "Delete" button at the bottom of the bulletin. You can also minimize the bulletin board on your homepage by clicking the "-" symbol in the top right corner.

MySpace: The Movie

A funny parody of MySpace from Vendetta Studios.

Font Generating- interactimage.com

Want to make great looking headings? Well you've come to the right place.

interactimage.com is a font generator website that allows you to create headings and interesting text. There is a large variety of fonts to choose from and you can pick any colour or size.

Some text made using the generator:

To make a heading, select which font group you want to choose the font from using the dropdown menu in the top right of the box.

Then press the "Font Finder" button to view all the fonts in that group. Select the font you wish to use or change font groups to view other styles.

When you've chosen the font you like, choose a colour from the colour wheel and a background colour if you'd like one. Then just decide on a size and click "Create"!

If it didn't turn out as expected simply go back and change your preferences.

To turn it into a picture that you can put onto MySpace, 'Copy and Paste' the heading into MS Paint. Trim the white area around the text until all you have left is the desired heading. Then save the picture and use an image hosting site to get a code that's compatible with MySpace.

Hope you like your results!

Is MySpace safe?

Many people have a bad view of MySpace and other social networking sites, mainly due to negative media publicity about stalkers and sexual abuse. However, the stories forget to mention that these victims were irresponsible users and many broke MySpace's conditions of use.

MySpace is as safe as they can make it and it is up to you, the user, to be responsible and aware of the dangers you face if you aren't cautious on the Internet. By following these tips, you can use MySpace safely and eliminate most dangers. It may look like a long list but many of the tips are common sense.

• Keep your profile private. this way only people you add or accept can view your profile. By doing this you can keep out any unwanted visitors.
• Don't sign up for MySpace if you're under 14. If you do, you're violating the terms of use and are more vunerable to predators.
• Don't write personal details on your profile such as your address, phone number, bank details or school. No one should be able to track you down if you don't give away anything to personal.
• Don't join your school group. MySpace allows you to add your school (not as a contact) as a type of group. If you add your school it makes it mush easier for strangers to find you.
• Don't add or talk to random strangers as you don't know who they are in real life. Photos can be found anywhere and information is easy to forge.
• If somebody sends you a friend request or a message, find out who they are before you accept or reply. This doesn't mean you have to change your settings to only allow messages from friends or so that it asks for your email address or surname when they add you, just make sure you know them.
• Make sure your display picture isn't to detailed and you can't easily identify you by it.

Many parents think MySpace is inapropriate for their children, and they could be right. Make sure you are mature and ready to follow these tips before you make an account.

Home-made backgrounds!

Personally, I think home-made backgrounds are fantastic. They are easy to make on MS Paint and other programs and you can show your style through them. The most common ones you'll find are the ones with photos of the person and their friends, or of things they like.They add another aspect to your profile and you can tell p

eople your interests without taking up room on your page.

The easiest way to make a background is by drawing a simple pattern (stripes, dots, etc) on Paint then saving the file. Use an image hosting website to upload the picture then "Copy" the "direct link to image". Open MySpace Profile Editor by clicking "Edit Profile" on the homepage. Then click "Profile Themes" at the top right corner and "Edit Theme" tab at the top of the pop-up window. 

You then "Paste" the "direct link to image" into the "Image Location:" box. Then click "Add Image" and decide if you want it to repeat across your background.

Save and Publish you new background and you're finished!

Playing around with the Prfoile Editor is a good idea too, as you can change preferences for text, images, links, backgrounds and modules.

Profile tips

Here are some tips that can help you make your MySpace page reflect your personality and also make it interesting for viewers. These are just guidelines, NOT RULES! :)

• Don't clutter your page with too many photos and/or YouTube (or other) videos. If you have more than one or two videos on your page the chances are people won't bother watching them, especially if they're long.


• Don't write too much about yourself! People won't read it if it's in a huge chunk. Break it up into lists (such as like and dislike) or paragraphs.


• In your photos, try not to have too many albums. If you have more than, say five, albums, people won't look through them. Don't make albums for one or two photos, and don't have two photos that are almost exactly the same. Simplify your photos in each album so that you don't have more than one page.


• If your layout has advertising for the website you got it from you can remove it by clicking "Edit Profile" and highlighting the layout code. Press Ctrl+F and type in some of the advertising words that are appearing on your site. Then delete the text between the two quotation marks ("ADVERT").


• Consider centering pictures, videos and text. This can make your page look much better.


• Use correct spelling/grammar on your page. You don't have to use any Caps but correct English makes your MySpace look less scrappy.


• Choose your layout and song carefully. Sometimes flashing layouts hurt peoples eyes, tempting them to leave your page.


• Be creative with your page. Make it different to other peoples. You could use font generators to make a heading (http://www.interactiveimage.com/) or put your text on a TV screen image in Paint.
  

• Have some interactive features on your page such as a video, a game, or a flash toy. Don't load up your page with these as too many just look tacky.


• And last of all, keep your page relatively simple and neat looking. You can still have a lot of content, just keep it looking good. Scrollers can help with this.

Have fun!