Identity marks and avatars

An identity mark is the small coloured shape and pattern Glob Social draws for an account. You see it beside names in friends lists, chat and wall posts. It helps you recognise a person as you move between those places.

The mark is generated from the account's identity. The same account has the same underlying shape and pattern wherever that mark is drawn. Its colours follow the theme, so changing between Dark and Light can change how it looks.

You can wear a Pixl as your avatar. In people lists and conversations, that picture takes the place of the generated mark.

Choose an avatar#

Open Settings → Account and choose Choose avatar beside your profile picture. This opens Freemarket's Avatars section, where you can choose free or bought art. See Freemarket for browsing and choosing an item.

You can also use your own work from Pixl. Right-click an eligible Pixl and choose Set as avatar. Read the confirmation before continuing: using your own Pixl this way shares it publicly. Choose Share and set as avatar to continue or Cancel to keep your current picture.

The Set as avatar action is offered for an available Pixl you own, in one of the editor's supported sizes, that has not been released as a free asset and is not already your avatar. If the action is absent, choose another Pixl rather than trying to apply it from an unrelated menu.

Back in Settings → Account, Remove avatar clears your current Pixl choice. The Profile section may show an older account photo or your initial when no Pixl avatar is available; the generated marks beside names use their own fallback.

How pictures appear#

An avatar beside a name is cropped to a circle. Animated avatars use a still picture when your device requests reduced motion. You can therefore recognise the same art without having it animate.

If a picture cannot load, the generated identity mark appears instead. A picture withdrawn from display also falls back to the mark. Seeing a mark where a picture appeared earlier does not tell you why the picture is unavailable.

The account's name remains beside the picture. In chat and on walls, right-click the name or picture to open its menu. On a touch screen, press and hold. The menu includes View profile and the relationship actions described in friends.

Badges beside names#

Chat and wall names can also have small badges. Hover a badge to read its label; the label is available to screen readers too.

Admin and Moderator identify platform roles. Creator: owns this node identifies an owner of the node whose room or wall you are reading. Friend reflects your own friendship with that person. A standing badge can appear alongside them.

For the recognitions you choose to list on your profile, see awards.