Blog

Return to Gravatar

Category: Gravatar

  • A question for Gravatar users

    We are working on a Gravatar mobile app and would like to ask our users:

  • Manage Multiple Identities with One Gravatar Account

    Did you know that you can have multiple email addresses associated with your Gravatar account? And that each email address can use a different image? Managing multiple email addresses with Gravatar is a snap. Many of us have multiple email accounts — for work, school, our personal lives, our blogs, online groups we belong to,…

  • Add your WordPress sites to your Gravatar Profile

    Now we’ve made it easy for you to promote your WordPress sites on your Gravatar Profile. You’ve always been able to add your WordPress sites manually, just as you can with any other existing web page. In addition, now we also also display a handy list of your WordPress.com and Jetpack-connected sites from which you…

  • Have a self-hosted WordPress site? Supercharge your Gravatars with Jetpack

    We’ve written about Gravatar Hovercards before — the nifty pop-up that adds a name, bio, and link to more info when you hover over a Gravatar on WordPress.com. Hovercards are a great way to learn more about the people commenting on your site, and to share your own contact info. But what about all the…

  • Gravatar and WordPress.com, Together Forever

    Did you know that your Gravatar.com account has always been a WordPress.com account? It’s true. Back in 2007 we (Automattic) acquired Gravatar. Heading into 2008 we rewrote it in PHP, and ever since then, it’s been using the same integrated user system as WordPress.com for accounts. Previously we handled that “behind the scenes,” but we…

  • Gravatar: Creating a Truly Global System

    We can’t really call Gravatars “globally recognized avatars” unless they’re realistically available to people the world over, and that means making sure everyone who wants to use one has language access. That’s why Gravatar, like every Automattic joint, relies on a fantastic group of international volunteers to translate almost everything we create, ensuring that what we do…

  • Default Image Changes

    Last week we made some changes to how default images, sometimes called “fallback images”, are handled in Gravatar URLs. The purpose of these changes was to enhance the security of the Gravatar API and protect the many of millions of users who view billions of Gravatars every day. The majority of you will not notice…

  • Is Your Gravatar Retina-Ready?

    Now that all of Gravatar.com is optimized for retina display, you’ll be looking extra sharp to anyone who views your Gravatar profile or Hovercard from a device like the iPhone 4. But are you looking your best? If you’re using a low-resolution image of yourself that you cropped from a friend’s Facebook photo two years…

  • Growth, Performance, and Pretty URLs

    It’s been a while since we have posted about the current scale of Gravatar. Since that post in 2008, things have changed quite a bit. We are now serving over 100,000 requests per second. That is over 8.6 billion requests per day – more than the number of people currently alive. With the help of…

  • Electronic Arts’ Battlefield 3 Game Selects Gravatars For Use In Profiles

    Electronic Arts has implemented Gravatar in their upcoming Battlefield 3 video game’s online profile and game management site Battlelog. Battlelog is the new browser interface for the game, allowing you to find friends, servers to play on, groups to join as well as your stats. Wherever a user is listed on the site, be it…