How to Customize Your MySpace Profile

• By Juan

Before We Start Customizing MySpace

• Customizing your MySpace page can give it a personal touch and make it reflect your own style.
• 

  We'll help you take your MySpace page from plain to popping!
• There are plenty of sites out there that have profile generators (pages that automatically create a look for your MySpace profile). However, there are some drawbacks to using profile generators:

1. They always leave links back to the generating site on your MySpace page.
2. After you've used the generator, you cannot modify your profile. You have to start from scratch to make changes.
3. Many generators only provide a limited list of images and designs for you to choose from.

• Customizing MySpace by yourself means:

1. You can choose or create your own images.
2. Making minor changes to the images later will be relatively easy.
3. There won't be any annoying links to profile generator sites.
4. You'll learn to share and edit pictures.
5. You can say "I made my profile myself!"

• The process we'll be embarking upon is fairly easy, but it can be even easier if you have the right web browser. Anything that features tabs is okay, but for the best results, I recommend using the Firefox browser. It's free to download and use, so go and get it now if you're not using it already!

Design Basics and MySpace Customization

• You'd be surprised at how much a little forethought improves the look of your page. Think about themes, colors, and styles you'd like on your page. A few ideas for themes:

• Your favorite sports team (example: Los Angeles Lakers)
• Your favorite video game (example: Halo)
• Your favorite band (example: Gorillaz)

• 

  The dots are representative of the color scheme built into these themes
  (Creative Commons photos from left to right by Jeramey Jannene, Gamerscore Blog, Olly Cope)

• Thinking along these lines can lead you to themes and styles that will look pretty cool because the colors already match so well.

• As a general rule, you don't want to use themes or colors that don't match. It's good to stick to a color scheme, or a limited set of colors that look good together. Some examples are: black and white; warm colors (reds, oranges, and yellows); or cool colors (blues, greens, and purples).

• Remember that the look of your page should not outshine your content. After all, this is meant to accentuate your personal info, not to hide or bury it. So choose a theme that reflects who you are!

• For our sample site, I'm going to use a Hawaiian theme. This theme has a built-in color scheme of greens and blues.

Step 1: Choose Your MySpace Images

• Once you've chosen your desired look, it's time to pick your images. You can find images online, use personal photos, or even use images you create yourself!

Option 1: Google Image Search

• Google Image search is generally your best option for finding a background image. You might also want to find an image we will use to create a contact table (We'll discuss this a bit more in Step 3, Option 2) and an image to use as the background of our tables (we'll discuss this a bit more in Adding Your CSS, part 2, but this last one is completely optional).

1. Go to the Google Image Search page and enter a phrase for an image you want. For our example, we'll be using the word "Hawaii."
   • 

     Fig. 1: Google Image search
2. Now click the thumbnail of the image of your choice.
   • Thumbnail: A small version of an image.
   • 

     Fig. 2: Google Image search results
3. Pay no attention to the frame at the bottom, just click on the "See full-size image" link in the top frame next to the thumbnail.
4. Nice! This is the one we're going with. It looks great, it's nice and big, and it looks like a background. Right click the image and click "Save Image as".
5. In the menu that comes up, decide where you'll save the file and what you want the filename to be. Make a note of it, we will need it in Step 2 and in Adding Your CSS, part 1.
6. Repeat these steps for a contact table image. It doesn't have to be any larger than 300x150 pixels, and we will work with it a bit more in Step 3.
7. Repeat these steps if you want a background image for your tables (remember, this is completely optional). If you want this image, the dimensions should be no larger than 400x600.

Option 2: Your personal collection

• Picking a photo of your own can give your page the most personal touch of all. Keep in mind that photographs often have lots of different colors, so they may not work well as background images.
  • Personal photos are the best option for profile pictures.

Option 3: Create something with your favorite image editor

• If you're a photographer, artist, or just into graphic design, this a great way to show your chops to the whole world. If you don't have these design options, don't worry about it. The first two options will still let you create a great MySpace page.

Step 2: Edit Your MySpace Background Image

• Once you've chosen your image, you might want to re-size it to background size (about 1024x768 pixels).
  • If the image you started with was very small, you might want to re-size to about 800x600 pixels instead, to preserve the image's quality.
• If your image does not need to be re-sized, go ahead and skip to the next section.

1. Go to Snipshot.com. Snipshot is an online image editing tool - a program that lets you modify your images, for free, without downloading a program to your desktop. It has a fraction of the tools of a program like Photoshop, but it is easy to use and serves our purposes nicely.
2. Click "Browse" in the box at the top right.
3. Navigate your way to your file and select it. After you click "Open", it'll go into the editing screen.
   • 

     Fig. 3: Uploading to Snipshot
4. Click the "resize" button, then grab one of the red squares at the corner of the image and drag it. On the lower left corner of the image, a yellow box specifying the dimensions of your image will appear. Drag it until it says 1024x768 (or 800x600 if you started with a small image).
   • 

     Fig. 4: Resizing in Snipshot
5. If you never get those exact dimensions, then drag until it it says 1024 for width and any number larger than 768 for height, or any number larger than 1024 for with and 768 for height. Then click on the button that says crop. Now it should have a clear box with a shaded out region. Drag a corner until it says 1024x768 in the yellow box, then grab the unshaded region in the middle and move it around until you have the exact piece you want. The shaded areas are going to be cropped out.
   • Again, if you started with a small image, use 800x600 as the dimensions you are shooting for.
6. Hit enter or double click the image. This will lock in your changes.
7. Click on "Save" in the upper right. You've made your background image and it's waiting on your desktop for you to upload!

Step 3: Get a MySpace Contact Table

• Now it's time get a contact table. You have two options for this: get one from a website, or make it yourself.

Option 1: Getting a Contact Table From a Website

• There are many sites out there that have free contact tables you can download. Here are some of the best:
  • All Contact Tables
  • Freecodesource.com

• With any of these sites, you can easily copy the code directly under the image you want and paste it into your MySpace profile (More in-depth information on this in Adding Your CSS Code, part 1). This is known as hotlinking. For the reasons I outlined in the introduction, though, you will have more options if instead of hotlinking, you download the contact table and save it on your computer.

• To save it to your computer, right click on the contact table you like and choose "Save Image As" from the menu. We'll upload it to our own webspace in Step 5. Make a note of where you saved it!

Option 2: Making a Contact Table Yourself

• If you want to make a contact table yourself, you will need an image. Again, it can be from Google Image Search, or from your collection, or you can make one yourself with any image editor of your choice.

• To make the table we're going to use a different online editor. It's like Snipshot, but it's specifically for making MySpace Contact Tables. It's called Contactables.com.
• Note: As in the last option, this one will offer code we can copy and paste. But do not use this code if you do not want to hotlink.

1. Go to Contactables.com.
2. Click on the "Upload" button.
3. Navigate to the image you want to use for your contact table.
   • 

     Fig. 5: Uploading to Contactbles.com
4. If your image is not the right size (the right size, by the way, is 300x150 pixels), Contactables can handle it. In the box that says "Image size" you have many options. There's an infinite combination of cropping (cutting off the edges) and resizing you can do, so modify it until you're satisfied. If you feel you've ruined your image, just click on the "Actual" radio box to reset it.
5. Next, go to the top and click the "text" tab. This is going to modify the text of your table. Go ahead and click the "Update Preview" button. It'll show you your background with some text on it! You can change virtually every aspect of the table here: The size of the text, the color, the actual words, and the alignment.
   • 

     Fig. 6:These items will change the look of your text.
   • Font Size: Slide it around to change the size of the text. Slide left to make it smaller and slide left to make it larger. Click "Update Preview" to see the changes.
   • Font Color: Click the Yellow Box and another small window opens with many color swatches in it (swatches are tiny boxes with different color samples in each. Click one and the window goes away. Click "Update Preview" to see the text in a new color.
   • Alignment: This positions the text close to the edges or closer to the center. Since there are only 3 options, try them all and see which one you like best. Click "Update Preview" to see the changes.
6. You should play with all of these until you reach a desired look. If you don't like the font it's in, click on the "Choose Font" button. This will bring up a new window that gives you many fonts to choose from.
   • Don't close the old window, though, we still need it!
7. When you're satisfied with the way it looks, scroll to the bottom and click the "Update Preview" button.
8. Right click on the preview image and select "Save Image" from the menu. Name the file something you'll remember ("final_contact_table.jpg" is a good choice). Take notice of where you save it on your computer.
   • 

     Fig. 7: Downloading your Contact Table

Step 4: Create a MySpace Profile Image

• All editing of your profile image is optional, and should only be used if you have a desired look in mind. If not, it's best to stick to a clean unmodified picture of yourself. A few more things to keep in mind:

1. MySpace has a strict policy regarding the images you use. Violence, nudity, or offensive content (hate speech, bigotry, etc.) is expressly prohibited; in a best-case scenario you'll get a warning or have it deleted, and in a worst-case scenario you'll be banned from MySpace. View the MySpace Photo Policy for more details.
2. Don't include pictures that show you doing drugs or committing crimes. You probably shouldn't do that stuff in the first place, and you definitely shouldn't take pictures of yourself doing those things. If you insist on doing those things and photographing them, at very least keep them off your MySpace profile, as it can lead to lots of trouble for you later.
3. Don't use pictures of other people. It is illegal to impersonate other people, but it's also very confusing to other users. If you prefer not use a photo of yourself for whatever reason, consider using a drawing or painting you made, a photograph you took, or any image that is meaningful to you.
4. Square images are best. If your image is much taller than it is wide or vice versa, it's going to be difficult to see properly. It's ok if it isn't a perfect square, but staying close to square dimensions will help ensure that it looks the way it's supposed to.
5. Don't include any images that contain personal information, like your address or phone number. I can't stress this enough.
6. There is a 5 MB limit to the size of your photo. This does not restrict pixel dimensions (1024x768, for example), only the file size matters. If the one you want is too big, go to Snipshot and make it smaller. Use the instructions on Editing Your Background Image to do this.
7. If you don't want to use a picture of yourself, here's a list of websites that will make an avatar for you.
   • Avatar: A cartoon or computer-generated image that represents you.
   • Simpsonize Me - make a Simpsons version of yourself.
   • South Park Studio - make a South Park version of yourself.
   • Zwinky - make a cartoon version of yourself. Not compatible with Macs.
   • Wee World - make a cute miniature version of yourself. This is what I'll be using.
8. Once you've made an avatar you like, the easiest way to save it is by doing a screen capture.
   • Screen Capture: An image created by copying whatever is on the computer screen.
   • With Macs, pressing Shift+Apple+4 will turn the mouse cursor into crosshairs. Click and drag the crosshairs over the area you want to copy. When you release the mouse button, it will have created an image called "Picture 1.PNG" on your desktop.
   • With PCs, you can simply press the Print Screen button on the keyboard and it will copy the whole desktop to the clipboard (it's not actually saved as a file as it is for Macs). You will then need an image editing program such as Photoshop. Open a new file and paste in the image (find the "Paste" command or simply press Control+V). Save it and then crop it using Snipshot.

Step 5: Host Your MySpace Images

• Now that we've made our images, it's time to bring them into MySpace and tie them together with our fonts, colors, and layout.

• MySpace can only host your profile pic, so you'll need a place to store your background image and contact table (plus any other images you may want to add later). We'll go to a hosting site, which is a place to store our image files on the Internet. Your best choices for free, easy hosting are Photobucket and Flickr.

• Note: Both of these sites are fine choices, with different features. Flickr offers more user options, but since we have a specific purpose in mind, Photobucket's ease of use makes it a better choice.
• Whichever site you pick, remember to write down your login ID and password!

Hosting with Photobucket

1. Start an account by going to Photobucket and clicking the red button that says "Join Now".
2. Choose a username and a password, then click next.
3. Enter all the personal info, retype the text in the "see this weird code?" image, and click "I accept." You're signed up!
4. Click the "Browse" button and find your background file.
5. Click "Open" on the box that comes up. Now the location of the image is in the field.
6. Repeat this in the lower fields for your contact table and any other images you might want to add to your MySpace page later.
7. Click the "Upload" button.
   • 

     Fig. 8: Uploading to Photobucket
8. Scroll down and you'll see your images. We'll need the URL of your images, and it can be found in the field labeled "Direct Link." We will need this later in Step 6.

• 

  Fig. 9: The second line, "Direct Link", is where we'll get the URL.

Hosting with Flickr

1. Go to Flickr and click on the button at the top-right that says "Create your Account". This will take you to the Yahoo! Login page.
2. If you have a Yahoo! account already, sign in using that. You can then choose a new Flickr name, but I recommend not changing it, just to keep things simple.
3. Click the button that says "Create an Account" and you're signed up!
4. If you don't have a Yahoo! Account, you'll have to sign up for one. Click on the link at the bottom right that says Sign Up. This will take you to a signup page where you must enter some personal information, a desired ID and password, a security question, and some verification text.
5. Click "Create My Account", and you're signed up!
6. Click on the link that says "Upload Photos". This will take you to another page.
7. At the bottom of the page, click the "basic Uploader" link.
8. Click the "Browse" button next to the field labeled "1."
9. In the window that pops up, navigate to where your background image is on your computer.
10. Click the "Select" button.
11. Repeat this in field 2 for your Contact Table image (the one you made with Contactbles).
12. Repeat this for any other images you may want to add to your MySpace profile later.
13. When you've done this for all your images, click the "Upload" button at the bottom.
    • 

      Fig. 10: Uploading to Flickr
14. Now you should see a screen that says "Processing" and a little animated image. Wait a second, then you should see your images. Click on one.
15. Now you should see the image with a few buttons over it. Click "All Sizes" button with a magnifying glass on it. This will take you to a new page.
    • 

      Fig. 11: Click on all sizes to see the URL of the image.
16. At the bottom of the new page there's a field labeled "2. Grab the photo's URL:". We'll copy the URL from here. Just like with Photobucket, we will need it in Step 6.

Step 6: Bring It into MySpace

• Now we'll bring it the images into MySpace. This seems like one of the trickiest parts, but not to worry! We'll take it step by step. First things first: go to MySpace and log in.

Adding your Profile Picture to MySpace

1. In the tab that has your main page, click the "Add / Edit Photos" link.
   • 

     Fig. 12: Adding a Profile Picture
2. Just like Flickr and Photobucket, click the "Browse" button.
3. In the box that pops up, find your profile picture on your hard drive, click it, and hit the "Open" button.
4. Click the "Upload" button. Your profile image is now on MySpace!
5. At the top of the page, click the "Home" link.

Adding Your CSS, part 1

• The code we'll be entering into MySpace is a type of code is called CSS, which stands for Cascading Style Sheets. You don’t need to learn what any of that means, but if you want a better idea of what it is, CSSBasics.com is great place to start.

• Luckily for us, the only parts we need to change are the bits that are in red. Bear in mind that it won't stay red when you paste it into MySpace, so you'll have to refer back to this page to know what to change. The parts highlighted in yellow don't do anything, they're just there for reference. You can leave them in without affecting the look of your MySpace page. When you paste the code into MySpace, these parts won't stay yellow either, but they will make it easier to find the section you're looking for if you want to modify your profile later on.

• Note: Remember that the red parts are the only parts you need to change. If you don't like the look of your MySpace Profile after you're done adding and editing your CSS, you can just go back and modify the bits in red one at a time until you get it just right.
• For now, let's get to that code.

1. Right-click on the "Edit Profile" link.
2. In the drop-down menu, click "Open in a new tab." We'll go to this new tab in just a moment.
3. Now, click "Profile" at the bottom of the small blue box. Cool! There's what the unedited profile looks like now. Whenever we make a change and save it, we'll come back to this tab and hit "reload" on our browser.
   • 

     Fig. 13: Opening a new tab and viewing MySpace profile
4. Now Click on the new tab. It should be to the right of the tab that is showing our profile.
5. Find the section labeled "About Me".
6. Highlight the following code and copy it. Paste it into the "About Me" field.

   • <style type="text/css"> .r{ This part changes the background image } Body{background-color:BACKGROUNDCOLOR; background-image:url(BACKGROUND IMAGE URL); background-position:Center Center;background-attachment:fixed; background-repeat:no-repeat;} .r{ This part changes the contact table } .contactTable {width:300px!important; height:150px!important; padding:0px!important; background-image:url(CONTACT TABLE URL);background-attachment:scroll; background-position:center center; background-repeat:no-repeat; background-color:transparent border:0px} .contactTable table, table.contactTable td {padding:0px !important; border:0px; background-color:transparent; background-image:none;} .contactTable a img {visibility:hidden; border:0px!important;} .contactTable a {display:block; height:28px; width:115px;} .contactTable .text {font-size:0px!important;} .contactTable .text, .contactTable a, .contactTable img {filter:none!important;} </style>

7. Here is what the red parts mean:
   • BACKGROUNDCOLOR- this is where we tell MySpace what color to display in the background. This will be the color displayed outside (behind, actually) of your background image. If someone has a huge monitor, for example, and your background image doesn’t cover all that space, the rest will be filled by the color you select. You can’t just type in a color word like “purple,” you have to enter it in Hexadecimal, which is a series of 6 digits that represent a color. This Site should be useful in picking one out easily. I suggest opening this in a new tab or window, as we will need throughout step 6.
   • BACKGROUND IMAGE URL – this is where we will place the internet location or URL of our background file. You can copy this info from Photobucket or Flickr (we covered this in Step 5, so check it again if you forgot how).
   • no-repeat – in this section you will only enter one of two things: “repeat” or “no-repeat”. If you choose repeat, the image will tile on the page as much as is possible, and you will never see your background color (this is what you want for a small background image). If you choose no-repeat, it will appear only once, centered on the page (this is ideal for larger background images).
   • CONTACT TABLE URL – this is where we’ll put the URL of our contact table. We’re basically doing the same thing we did for the background image here.
8. Once you’ve modified it, click “Save All Changes" at the top.
9. Fill out the verification box (MySpace calls it a Catchpa) with no spaces and click ok.
   • 

     Fig. 14: Copy the MySpace Catchpa with no spaces
10. Now look at your profile in the other tab.
11. Click the Reload button on your browser and get a look at your modified profile. Neat! We’re getting there!

Adding Your CSS, part 2

• Note: this part is completely optional. if you don't use this part (Adding your CSS, part 2), the tables in your profile be transparent, with only text and images visible on top of your background image.
• Now we’ll put a background color or image in the background of our tables. This is basically going to show on top of (covering) our background. This part is optional, but we need it now if we’re going to do it at all. If not, move on to the next section.

1. Click on the tab that has our edit page (the one with the "About Me" field where we pasted the last piece of code).
2. Insert this into the About Me Section after the last piece of code we pasted there:

   • <style type="text/css"> .r{ 3. This part puts an image and/or color in the Background of tables. } table, tr, td { background-color:transparent} table table table{ background-image:url(TABLE BG IMAGE URL); background-color: COLOR; background-repeat: repeat; background-attachment: fixed; border:0px} </style>

3. Again, the only parts we’ll edit are the red parts.
   • TABLE BG IMAGE URL – Just like the other images, you’d insert a URL for an image here. It will make the image you specify appear as the background of your tables. If you don’t want this but want a solid background color instead, leave it blank where the red text is.
   • COLOR – Remember this hexadecimal page I suggested opening in a new tab? Use it now to set the color of the background to whatever you want. Don’t close it, we still need it.
   • fixed– just like last time repeat/no-repeat, you only have two options here: “fixed” and “scrolling”. This only matters if you have an image. "Fixed" means the background won’t move with the tables when you scroll around, "scrolling" means it will.
4. Once you’ve modified it, click “Save All Changes" at the top.
5. Fill out the Catchpa with no spaces and click ok.
6. Now look at your profile in the other tab.
7. Click The Reload button on your browser and get a look at your modified profile.

Adding Your CSS, part 3

• Now we'll enter the code that controls the look of your text.

1. Click on the tab that has our edit page (the one with the "About Me" field where we pasted the last piece of code).
2. We’re going to paste this code into the About Me field right after the last two items:

   • <style type="text/css"> .r{ 4. This part controls the appearance of all the text on your page.} table, tr, td, li, p, div {color:FF2222;} .btext {color:000000;} .blacktext10 {color:2222FF;} .blacktext12 {color:22AA22;} .lightbluetext8 {color:FF4422;} .orangetext15 {color:FFFF22;} .redtext {color:22FF88;} .redbtext {color:EE2288;} .text {color:FFDDDD;} .whitetext12 {display:none} a:active, a:visited, a:link {color:2288FF;} a.navbar:active, a.navbar:visited, a.navbar:link {color:BB99DD; font-weight:bold;} a.navbar:hover {color:BB99DD;} .nametext {color:777777;} </style>

3. Again, it’s less complex than it looks. You’ll only edit the red parts. Here’s what each line of the image changes and controls:
   • .nametext - Your username at the top of the page. Mine says “Juan”.
   • .whitetext12 - The labels at the top of your contact, interests, and detail boxes.
   • .lightbluetext8 - the labels inside the individual boxes on the left-hand side of the page (General, Status, etc.)
   • .orangetext15 - "About Me", "Who I'd Like to Meet", "Friend's Space" and "Friend's Comments"
   • .blacktext12 - The text inside the "Extended Network" banner
   • .redbtext - The number of friends
4. Remember the hexadecimal page I suggested opening in a new tab? Use it now to set the color of your text to whatever you want.
5. It's a good idea to pick 3 or 4 colors and use those colors for the whole list. Make sure the text is easy to read! It's not a good idea to put white text on a white background, for example.
6. Once you’ve modified everything you want o modify, click “Save All Changes" at the top.
7. Fill out the Catchpa with no spaces and click ok.
8. Now look at your profile in the tab that shows the profile.
9. Click The Reload button on your browser and get a look at your modified profile.

Adding Your CSS, part 4

• Now we'll modify the borders around our tables. This is the last piece of CSS we need, and it's the easiest!

1. Click on the tab that has our edit page (the one with the "About Me" field where we pasted the last piece of code).
2. As before, we’re going to paste this code into the About Me field right below the last item:

   • <style type="text/css"> .r{ 5. This part controls the borders of all tables. } table, tr, td { border:0px; } table table {border: 0px;} table table table {border: NUMBERpx ATTRIBUTE COLOR; } table table table table {border: 0px;} </style>

3. Only one line to modify, but lots of choices in that line:
   • NUMBER - here we will decide how thick the border is. you can enter any number between 0-100, and the higher the number, the thicker the border
   • ATTRIBUTE - this determines what kind of border you will have. Your choices are "solid" (the line will be solid), "dashed" (dashed line), "dotted" (dotted line), "ridged", "grooved", "inset" and "outset". The last four choices look very similar, sort of like a frame for a painting or portrait.
   • COLOR - this determines the color of the border. You can enter hexadecimal code or if you want a basic color (red, green, blue, black, etc.) then you can simply enter that word. Don't expect "Burnt Umber" or "Cornflower" or "Kelly Green" to work; in those case you're better off entering the hexadecimal.
4. Once you’ve modified everything you want o modify, click “Save All Changes" at the top.
5. Fill out the Catchpa with no spaces and click ok.
6. Now look at your profile in the tab that shows the profile.
7. Click The Reload button on your browser and get a look at your modified profile.
8. If you don't like the way it looks, go back the About Me field and modify any of the parts that were in red until you like what you see!

Adding Your CSS, part 5

• This is another optional piece of code, but it's one you can place in any field (not just the "About Me" section:

• .r{ 6. This hide the "View All Friends" link. } <style>.redlink {DISPLAY:NONE;VISIBILITY:HIDDEN;}</style>

• Add it to any section and the "View All Friends" link will not be visible!

Step 7: Find Music for Your MySpace Profile

• From here on out everything we do is optional. Still, music on your profile can give it a lot of flair, and it is a great indicator of your taste. You can choose between the MySpace music player, or import your own tunes.

Option 1: MySpace Music

• How nice! MySpace has a built-in music player. Let's put a song on the profile.

1. Click the "Music" Link at the top of the page.
2. Decide on a band or musician you like and search for them in the Search field. I'm going to look for Don Ho.
3. You should see some results for your search. There's Don Ho! Bear in mind that for popular bands, there are usually several fake band profiles. Not only are these often poor in comparison to the real page, they are also infringing the copyrights of that band! You like that band, so don't support people who infringe their copyrights. The best way to tell is by looking at the amount of page views, fans, song plays, and even the profile picture. All of these should be highest in the official page. Click on that one.
   • 

     Fig. 15: Finding Music on MySpace
4. Once you're in the page, there is a player on the right side. Take a moment to listen to the songs available.
5. When you've decided the one you want, click the "Add" link on the far right.
6. In the confirmation screen, click the "Add to Profile" button.
7. Click that tab that is displaying your profile and hit "Reload" in your browser. There's the song; sounds nice!

Option 2: External Sources

• Some people don't like being limited by the MySpace music player, so they find other ways of adding music to their profile. You may want to check out our page on How To Discover New Music for ideas on what music you might want on your page. Once you've done that, there are a number of sites that you can use to add music to your profile, but we're going to focus on one: My Flash Fetish. Go ahead and open it in a new tab (right click the link, select "Open in new tab") and click on that tab.

1. At the top right, there's a link that says "Sign Up". Click that link.
2. Fill out the information there. Remember to write down your username and password!
3. Next to the "Sign Up" link there's an "MP3 Search"" link. Click it.
4. Find the field with a red "Search MP3" button next to it. Enter the name of a musical act you like and Click the button.
5. Scroll through the list until you see a song you like. Click the button with an image of a speaker on it to make sure the song plays. If it does, check the check box at the far right.
6. Scroll to the top of the list. Over it is a red button labeled "Add MP3s". Click it.
   • 

     Fig. 16: Finding Music on MyFlashFetish.com
7. Repeat the last three steps as many times as you want, but 2-3 songs should be sufficient.
8. When you're done picking songs, notice the little blue box just under the search field. Click the "choose a MP3 player design" link. This will take you to a new page.
   • 

     Fig. 17: Choose a look for your MP3 player
9. Scroll down a bit and look at the styles of player available.
   • 

     Fig. 18: Options for the look of your MP3 player
10. When you see one you like, click the "Create" button under that player. This will take you to a new page.
11. Scroll to the bottom and make sure the songs you added are there.
12. Click the red "I'm Done!" button.
13. Find the field with the code in it. Highlight all the code and copy it.
    • 

      Fig. 18: Copying the code for the MP3 player
14. Click the tab where we're editing your MySpace profile (where the "About Me" field is).
15. Paste the code into the field in which you want you music player to appear. I recommend pasting it into your "Music" field.
16. Save your profile and fill out the catchpa.
17. Click the tab where we're viewing the profile. Look, it's our player playing our songs! Sounds good!

• You’re done! Congratulations on customizing your MySpace profile yourself! Now it reflects your individual style… isn’t it nice to know that no one else’s page looks like yours?

Additional MySpace Customization Resources

• As you may have guessed, this is only the tip of the iceberg where it comes to customizing your MySpace page. If you still want to keep tweaking it, here are a list of links that will help you along. Rest assured that these are the most spam and ad-free sites available for this:
• Howcast: How To Pimp Your MySpace Page
• Freecodesource.com – very neat page with lots of CSS code, layouts, contact tables, and miscellaneous graphics.
• ModMySpace.com – tons of free code and images, and lots of additional instructional content.
• Wikipedia: Image Editing Primer – this will give you the basics on editing images so that you can make the best looking images possible.
• Dafont.com - tons of free fonts. These are really useful if you want to make your contact table from scratch in Photoshop.
• MySpace Customization Blog - By a MySpace user for MySpace users! Tons of information in this blog.
• I (heart) Murder - a really cool profile that shows you just how much you can customize your page. She’s flipping the bird in her profile pic, so tell the kids to leave the room before you click if you object to that sort of thing.
• My Profile on MySpace - I actually built my page using these instructions! Check it out.

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