How to Add an Image to Your Windows Live Mail or Outlook Express Signature

Once you've mastered HTML formatting in your signature in Windows Live Mail, Windows Mail or Outlook Express, adding an animation to it is the streusel topping the adding of which is a piece of cake. All you really need is a nice animated gif to include in your signature.

To insert a graphic, possibly animated, into your email signature in Windows Mail or Outlook Express:

Start with an empty message using rich HTML formatting in Windows Mail or Outlook Express.
Design your signature using the formatting tools.
Insert the picture or animation where desired.
- You can link the image to a web site.
Go to the Source tab.
Highlight the code between <BODY> and </BODY>.
Select Edit | Copy from the menu.
Open Notepad.
Select Edit | Paste from the menu.
Use File | Save to save the signature to a file called "signature.html" in your My Documents folder.
Select Tools | Options... from the menu in Windows Mail or Outlook Express.
Go to the Signatures tab.
Click New.
Make sure File is selected under Edit Signature.
Use the Browse... button to open the "signature.html" file just created.
Click OK.
Test your new signature.

In Windows Live Mail, you can add an image to your signature on a more direct route by creating the necessary HTML code directly:

Create a signature using HTML formatting in Windows Mail or Outlook Express.
Edit the signature's .html file to include '<img src="{path to your animated gif}" />' (without the outer, but including the inner set of quotation marks) where you want to place the animation.
- Of course, you can use all the <img /> XHTML tag's attributes and
- use Outlook Express itself to easily create the necessary HTML code by inserting an image while composing your richly formatted signature.
Make sure the signature animation is sent together with the emails you send.