Backgrounds for Xanga

Backgrounds for Xanga are eye-catching and stimulating parts of the social networking site. They set the tone for each users page, whether it be merry and bright or dark and brooding and every mood in between. Although originally a "review" site established back in 1999, Xanga has developed into a flexible and thoroughly web 2.0 enabled site.

Choosing the background has come a long way since the times of just getting to pick a color. Xanga allows each user to create as cool a homepage as their imaginations can come up with through a very simple interface. Even better, it the user is familiar with some basic HTML-type coding, the backgrounds for Xanga can be configured in an infinite number of combinations

First, Find the Right Background

Free web graphics abound on the web. If you are lucky, you may find one that is already a good size – at least 640 pixels by 480 – and will not need any editing. After making sure that it is legal to use the background you want, whether through direct permission of the creator or a purchased license, it is a very simple matter to upload the image to your backgrounds for Xanga.

If the image is not that large, that does not mean it cannot be used – in the next section you'll learn how to configure backgrounds for Xanga so that any image at all – even a 1x1 pixel dot – can be used as an environment for your content. However, this will involve having the image repeat across the background, so it is somewhat important to make sure the image lends itself to a quilt-like arrangement. Some backgrounds are made to seamlessly blend into each other. A search for "web background patterns" on Google will yield quite a few choices, including tutorials for creating your own.

That is also a way around the licensing issue: use your own photos or images created in Photoshop. These can be changed to whatever size you like, and are as personal as you like. Keep in mind that this is going to be a public page open to anyone to see, and the images should be appropriate for all ages.

How to Configure Backgrounds for Xanga

The menu to upload and customize your backgrounds for Xanga is found using the "edit themes" button on the left side of your Xanga home page. This presents a great number of choices, but the section for "Site Background" is very clearly marked, and opens up a menu that lists the various characteristics of the background. This menu is really only an interface to generate HTML that will set the background the way you like it, but not having to wade through lines of code is a very nice feature.

At first glance, there are only four choices that need to be made:

• Background Color
• Background Image
• Position
• Repeat

However, each of these actually has some very specific aspects to configure.

Background Color

At first it may seem that the color is irrelevant, since the whole purpose here is to create your own background image. However, there are times when the image will not cover the entire background, and in that case the background color is very important. Choose one that will complement the background image you have chosen. You can either enter RGB codes (such as "#000" for black) or select to have it transparent, no color at all.

Background Image

This is where you can select the image URL of the background you've chosen. It's important not to simply "hotlink" to another site on the web without the permission of that site owner – bandwidth can become expensive. The easiest way around this is to upload your chosen background image into your own Xanga photo gallery, and link to it.

Position

Give some thought to the position of the image. As shown in the picture, there are a lot of ways to position your graphic, but unless you've specifically designed it to fit a certain way on the page, you'll probably want to select "top left" or "centered."

Repeat

This menu is a very powerful one, for only having four choices. You can choose to have your image repeat on the page either horizontally or vertically or both, and this can lead to beautiful patterns and textures for your background. Often these patterns don't look quite the way you expect when you first choose the image, and it is a good idea to test it and perhaps do some editing of the image to keep it easy on the eyes. Desaturating color or reducing the opacity of an image in Photoshop is a good way to keep the essence of an image while making it harmonious with the rest of the page.

Remember that this is a background, not the content of the page, and it should serve to highlight and support the photos, text, and other parts of your page. The web is full of busy backgrounds that keep people from actually seeing what is on a web page. Usually these are quickly clicked through. However, backgrounds for Xanga can be works of art in and of themselves with a little care and thought.

• Blogging the Bible
• How to Add Twitter to Your Blog
• Ideas for Fun on Facebook

• Facebook Login Problems
• Facebook Sign In
• Free Lesbian Chat Rooms
• Best Facebook Proxy Sites
• Funny Facebook Status

• Learning About Xanga
• Xanga Design Codes
• Cute Xanga Layouts
• How to Make a Cool Xanga
• Cute Backgrounds for Xanga