ImageCave Help

If you have a question that you'd like to see answered here, send it to help@imagecave.com.

You will get a confirmation prompt, asking if you wish to add the information from the file into your Registry - click Yes.

After this step is complete, you'll be able to use XP's Web Publishing Wizard to publish files to your account here. When viewing your images in Window Explorer, look for the "Publish this folder to the web" icon, or "Publish this file to the web", on the left side of Explorer. Look for the "ImageCave" option in the list of available publishers, and select it. Click Next, and you'll be on your way.

Until we're able to write a comprehensive tutorial on using Web Publishing Wizard, here is a GeekGirls tutorial to get you started.

Add Pictures to your Account
Free accounts are limited to 250K images. Images must not contain nudity or violate any copyrights, or local/state/federal laws. Images or accounts violating these restrictions will promptly removed without warning.

1. Log in from our home page or from right here.
2. Click "Add Pictures" in the blue horizontal menu, or click here.
3. In the "Upload From your Computer" section , click on the first 'Browse' button. Use the dialog that opens to find an image file on your computer to upload.
4. Alternatively, you can use the "Transfer Images from a Website" portion of the "Add Pictures" page to specify a web URL where we can transfer the image from.
5. Click the Upload button to add the file to your account on ImageCave.com.
6. Click the "Photo Albums" link on the blue horizontal menu to view your album and the image you just uploaded.

Now What Would You Like to Do?
Use on eBay
There are two ways to add an image to an eBay listing. The easiest way is to add the "URL" to the image you uploaded above, to the "Picture URL" field on eBay's listing form. We provide the URL you need for this on the album page, right next to the image.

Select and highlight the URL we provide for your image, then use your browser's Edit/Copy menu command. You can then paste the URL into eBay's Picture URL field by left-clicking in the field, then use your browser's Edit/Paste menu command to insert the image URL.

Use on a message board
Most message boards use "EZCode" to insert images or other special tags. If you're using an EZBoard, and images are enabled, you can easy add an image to your posts or your signature.

The format of the tag is [IMG]your picture URL[/IMG]. Type those tags, but replace the text "your picture URL" with the actual URL we provide for each image on your album pages.

Use in an email message
You can include the URL to your picture, which we provide on your album pages, in an email, to share the image with others quickly.

In most cases the person recieving the message will see the URL you sent them as a hyperlink which they can click on to view your image. In some cases with older mail programs, or online mail services, they might have to copy the URL from the message and paste it into their web browser's address bar. Then when they press enter the image will load.

What's Next?
You can continue to upload more images by starting at Step #2 above, or begin using the more advanced features on ImageCave.com.

You can create an album by clicking "Albums" in the blue main menu, then clicking the "Create Album" link towards the top of the page. Albums give you an easy way to organize your images. You can move images between albums at any time to re-organize them after uploading.

Each additional image you upload will have a new URL. The URL will change, depending on the album you upload it to, and its filename. If you wish to use your image outside of our site (direct linking) then you need to get the URL for each individual image. The URL will always be under the image's filename on the Album pages.

Q: How do I get started?
A: View our Quick Start guide, above!

Q: How do I use my images on another website (direct linking / remote linking / hot-linking)?
There are two main ways to "hotlink" your images onto another site. If the website, such as eBay, asks for a "picture URL" or "web address" for your image, use the URL, to the right of your photo, as shown below:

If the website allows you to enter raw HTML code, such as eBay's "Description" field, or some message boards, or bloggers, you can get the HTML to add your image to the site as shown below:

Note: If you're using eBay, and adding the HTML for a description, make sure you use the "Enter Your Own HTML" version of the description editing box, if its available! Otherwise, the codes, instead of the image, will appear in your listing.

Q: Why do my BMP images turn into JPG when I upload them?
A: You should read our section on optimizing images, but BMP format images have file sizes typically 10-100 times bigger than GIF or JPG versions of the same image, at the same size. We convert BMP images to JPG format, to optimize them for faster loading, bandwidth reduction, and decreased file size.

Q: I uploaded a very large image. Why is it smaller after uploading?
We reduce any images over 1024x1024 to fit within that size. Images larger than that normally won't display on people's browsers, without scrolling, and the file size associated with larger images can become quite unmanagable very quickly!

Q: I can't Log In
A: If you can't remember your password, contact our support staff. If you're confident that you're using the right username and password, then you might need to enable "cookies" on your web browser.

The easiest way to enable cookies for Internet Explorer is to add this site to your browser's list of "trusted sites". To modify this list, go to Tools / Internet Options / Privacy, then click the "Sites" button. Enter www.imagecave.com, and click "Add" or "Allow". Close the dialog windows to get back to your browser; you might need to close and restart your browser for the changes to take effect.

Also, click here for a quick guide to enabling cookies for various web browsers (external web site).

Q: What is bandwidth / data transfer?
OR Q: Are there bandwidth limits?
OR Q: What happens when I exceed the data transfer limit for my account?
A: Bandwidth is a measurement of the amount of data transferrred from your account each time somebody views an image. If you get a lot of hits to your images or albums, or use very large image files, the bandwidth, which is also referred to as data transfer, will certainly add up. If the amount of data transferred from your account, during a single month, exceeds your account's data transfer limit, then your images and albums will be disabled until the monthly anniversary date of when you signed up. You'll still have access to your account and be able to manage images, but externally linked images will not load.

Free accounts only: If hits to your images or albums in a single day generates excessive traffic that adds up to over one third of your monthly allowance, your account may be temporarily blocked for the rest of the day.

Your account page shows your current usage statistics.

See the section on optimizing images to reduce your data transfer significantly!

Q: How do I optimize my images?
A: The most important thing that can help reduce data transfer, and dramatically speed up image loading, is to optimize your images. Below is a brief discussion of various ways to optimize your images.

Image Dimensions
The first thing to consider is the dimensions of your image. This means how many pixels across, and vertically, make up the image. Modern digital cameras easily capture images at 2048x1600 or higher resoution. The average web surfer is using an 800x600 display! Images larger than 760x580 (roughly) won't even fit on their screen!

Photos for web use should be resized typically, to no bigger than 640x480, or if absolutely needed, 800x600. That "resizing" can reduce the file size of your image to 1/4 of its original size. Make sure you keep your original image file intact--you may want to use it for prints later, in which case the higher the resolution the better!

Crop out Unwanted Background
Many times we'll see large digital photos that contain lots of unimportant background, with the subject as a small, obscure element in the middle of the image. Use the photo editing software that came with your digital camera to "crop" the photo, removing unimportant or distracting background details, leaving the subject. Then scale your image down further, if neccessary, to fit comfortably on the average 800x600 display. This keeps the detail on the subject, bringing it up close!

Image Formats
Image files can vary dramatically in size, for many reasons. Bigger image files take up more room, use more data transfer when people view them, and take longer to download. Optimizing your images can not only help you get the most out of your ImageCave account, but also improve the overall experience for people viewing your images!

Below are summaries of the image formats we support, and pros and cons for each.

• BMP
  BMP files are typically very large, and not a standard format for web use. They normally represent a very exact, raw, image capture. You should convert BMP files to GIF format, using an image utility like InfranView, free from www.download.com. A GIF image file is typically 1/10th or smaller than an identical BMP image. BMP images won't load in all web browsers (primarily because BMP is a Microsoft format).

  BMP images should be avoided for web use, due to lack of compression, poor compatibility and their huge file sizes.

• JPG/JPEG
  Photographs should be saved in JPEG format, with some amount of compression. Digital photographs directly from digital cameras typically have very little compression. Using a free tool like InfranView to add JPEG compression to JPEG images. You can usually reduce an uncompressed to 1/3rd its original file size, or more, with a little compression. JPEG compression is a "lossy" method, meaning when you add more compression, there is some loss in quality. You will have to find a balance between an acceptable loss in quality, but with good file size reductions.

  JPEG images with good compression are typically around 100K - 120K for an 800x600 image.

• GIF
  GIF images are best suited for images containing large areas of flat colors, such as screenshots or desktops, Paintbrush-created images, logos, or any image that isn't a photograph. GIF images use "run length encoding" compression, which is only effective when there are long runs of the same color in the image.

  GIF images can also contain a "transparency" value, which allows the background to show through any area of your image that matches the specific transparency color. This is useful for overlaying logos and other graphics onto a webpage with a background image. Transparent GIF's are very common, but do have their limitations.

  Furthermore, GIF images can also be "animated". Animated GIF's can add a lot to your graphic, but they can also become very big, very fast. Make sure the animation you're using is worth the much larger file size! Check out GIF Construction Set from Alchemy Mindworks for a good animated GIF utility.

  GIF images are great for specific purposes, and sizes vary dramatically depending on the number of colors contained in the image.

• PNG
  PNG is a relatively new format, and isn't supported by all browsers. It offers powerful JPG-like image compression, resulting in very small file sizes (and therefore very fast loading!). It also features an entire color channel dedicated to "alpha transparency", which makes them much more powerful than GIF images for overlaying graphics on top of other graphics. Again, PNG formats (and/or various aspects or them such as transparency) aren't widely supported yet, but they are catching on.

  PNG format is easily one of the best, but browser support needs to catch up with JPG and GIF.

Q: How do I change image formats?
A: Changing a file extension, from "BMP" to "GIF" for example, won't change the image format. It will likely "break" the image so that it won't load except in the smartest web browsers or image editing programs. The only way to change an image format is to use an image utility. Our system can convert any of the image formats we support to JPEG format, by using the "Convert to JPG" link to the right of each non-JPEG image in your album. When converting to JPEG, you will have the option to specify a new width, height, and a JPEG compression level, allowing you complete control over the final size and quality of your image.

There are also 3rd party utilities, such as InfranView, freely downloadable at Download.com. Open the image with the utility, and do a "Save As" or "Export" to the new format. Your original image will typically remain intact, but for specific support on these utilities you'll have to consult their documentation.

Q: How do I post pictures on eBay?
Use our Quick Start guide above to add your photos to your account. Once your images are added, view them by clicking the "Photo Albums" link on the main menu, then look for the thumbnail of your image.

Helpful Tip: It's usually handy to have your listing open in one browser window, and our site open in another, so you can switch between them easily without losing your place!

Each image in your account has an address - the "URL". This address is what you need to add your photo to your auction. Highlight, then copy the URL for the image you want to use. To copy selected text, use your browser's Edit/Copy menu command once you've highlighted the URL.

Helpful Tip: Copy and Paste are functions of your computer, allowing you to easily move blocks of text from one program to another, saving you the effort of re-typing the information. When you Copy highlight text, its placed on the "Clipboard", which is an invisible, temporary storage place in your computer. When you "Paste", the text stored in your Clipboard is inserted where your cursor is.

Then go back to eBay. Find the "Picture URL" field. Put the cursor in this field by clicking in it. Then paste the URL you copied above by using your browser's Edit/Paste menu command. The URL to your photo should appear!

Q: How do I add more than one picture to my auction?
A: You use the same procedure as above, to get images to your account and to find your images in your albums. But then instead of copying the URL, you want to copy the HTML tag we provide. This tag is a special code to display your image in your auction's description.

Go back to your listing description, and view the page where you edit your description. Make sure you use the "Enter your own HTML", if you see that tab available above the description box. Put the cursor right where you want the image to be added, and Paste the code by using your browser's Edit/Paste command.

You can repeat this process for each additional image you wish to add to your listing!

Q: Why doesn't the size of my album equal the sum of the images in the folder?
A: The album sizes shown includes your photos and their thumbnails--the thumbnails are usually small, but they do take up a little space and are counted towards your total use.

Q: My images are too big to fit on the screen!
A: You can to use an image or photo editing utility to reduce the image's width and height before uploading. InfranView is a good, free utility, available at Download.com.

Q: Why are my thumbnails blank or all white?
A: This is the default thumbnail we create for your image when our software can't identify the file type, or if the image file is corrupt. In some cases this can happen if you mis-label an image file with the wrong extension, such as give a bitmap (BMP) file a .GIF file extension. If you can click the thumbnail, and view the full-sized image okay, then this is probably the case.

Q: Anyone can view my pictures! How do I hide my images?
Every album on ImageCave has a Public Album Page that's created, for easily sharing images with others.
A: There is a "Disable Public Album Page" option on the Customize Album form, which will prevent thumbnails from showing on the Public Album Page.Links to any sub-albums (subfolders) will also be hidden. Image links will still work, but people won't be able to browse around in your album freely.

Just click the "Customize Album" link on the top of the album control panel pages, and select the "Disable Pubic Album Page" checkbox, then save changes!