# User Support > Forum Software Support >  My avatar disappeared -- how do I get it back?

## stringalong

My avatar used to be on the site, but I notice it's gone.  I don't know how to post it or get it back.  Please advise.  Thanks for this site, which we all love!

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## Mandolin Cafe

No, it's there. Likely a connectivity issue on your end. Hold down your shift key and hit refresh in your browser.

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## stringalong

I closed mandolincafe and reopened it.  Also, I went to the forum again and again, and held down the Shift key and hit Enter, but my avatar is still not there.  I don't have a Refresh key unless it's one of the F keys, but I don't know which one.  Interesting that you can see my avatar, but I can't anymore.

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## James Miller

Yup, your avatar has poofed on my end as well.


When you do recover it...
Create a Pictures folder on your hard drive, if you do not have one already. Then make a folder called Avatars. Put all your Avatar photos n there, and back them up.
I've got all sorts of avatars throughout the internet and over the years. Most "Avatar" photos are way smaller versions of the originals, and enhanced using Zoner Photo Studio to bring out their crispness.

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## MikeEdgerton

Can you see the image below? Also, what browser are you using?

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## OneChordTrick

Still there for me too

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## MikeEdgerton

> Yup, your avatar has poofed on my end as well.
> 
> 
> When you do recover it...
> Create a Pictures folder on your hard drive, if you do not have one already. Then make a folder called Avatars. Put all your Avatar photos n there, and back them up.
> I've got all sorts of avatars throughout the internet and over the years. Most "Avatar" photos are way smaller versions of the originals, and enhanced using Zoner Photo Studio to bring out their crispness.


Her avatar would be below what you have screen captured. Her profile still has the avatar or it wouldn't show on her posts.

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## James Miller

Oh, thought she could not see her Profile photo. I sit corrected.  :Wink: 

Her posting (forum) avatar is still there, yes.

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## Dale Ludewig

Interesting. Her avatar is gone in Chrome on this machine. But it's there in Firefox. And I was on a different machine earlier today (at my shop) and the same thing was going on there. Not only a different machine but a different service provider (Frontier vs. Comcast).

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## Bob Clark

I'm seeing it on an IPad using Safari.  It is an especially nice avatar, too!

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## David Kennedy

I can't see strinalong's avatar when using Chrome but can see it when using Safari. Strange!

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## stringalong

Thanks for all your replies, folks.  Yes, Mike, I can see my picture as attached.  That's the avatar that used to show up fine here.  What is the process on mandolincafe to add an avatar?  I would like to just try to start over, but can't figure out where to "go" to add the avatar.  I went to My Profile and don't see a way to add or change the avatar.

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## Dale Ludewig

It sounds/looks right now like it could be a Google (Chrome) problem. Not?

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## stringalong

> It sounds/looks right now like it could be a Google (Chrome) problem. Not?


Dale, you are absolutely right on!  How did you figure that out?  I checked mandolincafe.com in Internet Explorer (or whatever it's called these days),and my avatar shows up fine there.  My computer guru guy wants me to use google chrome.  He says it's the best search engine.  The guru I used to rely on wanted me to use firefox, but I kept having problems with firefox.  It blocked a lot of sites. So I'll just have to live with googlechrome, unless someone knows a way to make it show my avatar here.

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## James Miller

Curious... I ran up Chrome and most everyone's avatars are loading except Stringalong.

Wonder if it's a URL link issue, or a size thing? I resize mine to 100x100 pixels and manually uploaded it. Can see it just fine in Chrome Version 65.0.3325.181 (Official Build) (64-bit).

Right-clicked her name to a new tab, and see this other odd thing...  
Right clicked that to a new tab in Chrome, went to: https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/i...519&type=thumb
Message: This page isn’t working
www.mandolincafe.com sent an invalid response.
ERR_RESPONSE_HEADERS_MULTIPLE_CONTENT_DISPOSITION

Clicked reload, got to: https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/i...519&type=thumb
Message: This page isn’t working
www.mandolincafe.com sent an invalid response.
ERR_RESPONSE_HEADERS_MULTIPLE_CONTENT_DISPOSITION

Not sure if that helps the webby end of hings or not. Both links show the avatar in Firefox.

So resized her photo and adjusted the photo in two different modes. These are 100 pixels in height. Would suggest backing up your original, and much smaller photo before trying these. If either of these work, then it was a pixel (size) issue.
Merely a suggestion.

Original, renamed: 

Version 1, 100 pixels: 

Version 2, 100 pixels: 

Now I just noticed something, as I was working from her copied image. There is a comma before the period in the photo's name. Wonder if perhaps it's the name?

The original photo is named: Bachem*,*.jpg (I bolded the comma to perhaps make it clearer.)

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Jess L.

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## James Miller

And to go one further...
Even though I renamed all the photos, the server named them after posting...

Original was renamed to: bachem.jpg ~> Server renamed it to Bachem,.jpg <~ Notice the comma-period
Version 1 was named: 1Bachem.jpg ≈ Server did not rename it
Version 2 was named: 2Bachem.jpg ~> Server renamed it to 2Bachem,.jpg <~ Notice the comma-period

All three can be viewed in Chrome

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## Jess L.

> Curious... I ran up Chrome and most *everyone's avatars are loading except Stringalong*. ...


Yup, same here. Right now I can see everyone's avatar except for Stringalong. 

There's *no* Stringalong avatar showing on my *computer* - *Chrome* browser, *Windows 10* OS, cable Ethernet connection to ISP. 

Also, *no* Stringalong avatar on my *phone* - *Chrome* browser, *Android* OS, phone-carrier "data" *not* wifi (if that matters, in case the ISP was doing something to certain files or whatever).

Something weird going on there... James I think you might be onto something about the files being renamed and/or resized or... something... 


*Edited to add:* 




> ... I checked mandolincafe.com in *Internet Explorer* (or whatever it's called these days),and my avatar shows up fine there. ...


Ah... ok I tried that, yup IE *does* show your avatar... 





> ...My computer guru guy wants me to use google chrome. ...


Good advice, IMO.  :Smile:  I switched all our household tech gadgets to the Chrome browser a few years ago, after years of using Firefox. I avoided using IE like the plague (this is not a tech website so I'll skip the details why). I have no intention to switch away from Chrome. If the only Chrome anomalies I encounter (knock on wood) are the inability to play midi files without downloading them first, and a missing avatar now and then, I'll consider myself fortunate... could be a lot worse. However, that doesn't explain the mystery of why all the avatars show up except for Stringalong's...

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## MikeEdgerton

There was a reason why I asked what browser. There is a Chrome setting that turns off some but not all images that I've dealt with in the past. It looks like you've got this down. By the way, I'm on Chrome.

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## Mandolin Cafe

Sorry you're still having trouble. I'm unable to reproduce this across three different machines I have using six different browsers.

I also downloaded your avatar and it had what I consider an issue with the way it was named. Although I don't think this likely is the cause of your inability to see it--though it could be-- the file name originally had a comma in it which is not considered a best practice as a naming convention. The file name was bachem,.jpg. I changed the image to a .png file, renamed it and removed the comma and made it square from the rectangle shape it was and made the extra space in the image transparent so it wouldn't show because they display better on other parts of the forum if you're posting there such as the blogs, social media and news article comments. In these sections they're resized and considered thumbnails.

You can right-click the avatar on a PC and download it to your hard drive if desired, or Cntrl + click on a Macintosh.

https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/i...ine=1523275773

You can even take an avatar image and use it in a post with an image tag as long as you don't tell it to "Retrieve remote file and reference locally" as an attachment because it won't recognize that URL:

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James Miller, 

Jess L.

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## Jess L.

> ... I changed the image to a .png file, renamed it and removed the comma and made it square from the rectangle shape it was and made the extra space in the image transparent ...


I can see the avatar now that you've made those changes, but I couldn't see it before that. I think you fixed it!  :Mandosmiley:  

Hope it's working for the OP now too.

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## stringalong

James Miller, thanks so much!  I am able to see my avatar now in Chrome.  I will also save one of the smaller images you made.  I wonder if other people are now able to see my avatar, in Chrome or other browsers?

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## MikeEdgerton

Actually save the one Scott made. That's the one that is working.

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## stringalong

> Actually save the one Scott made. That's the one that is working.


Mike, is the one I want to save the one you've attached here?  I can't find one Scott made.

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## MikeEdgerton

That is the one.

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## stringalong

Thanks Mike, Scott, and EVERYONE for tackling the problem of my missing -- and re-found -- avatar!  Okay, everybody, let's get back to practicing our mandolins!  Here we go!!!!  I'm finishing up playing my list of Old Time D tunes.  I have my tunes arranged alphabetically by key in a list, and I just keep going through the list.  I get 1/2 page of tunes or a page done almost every day.  I'm starting today off with St. Anne's Reel, Walkin' in the Parlour, Whiskey Before Breakfast, Winder Slide, and Year of Jubilo.

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Jess L.

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