~~ (Visual) Wix Profile Guide ~~

[Horntastic]

» Hello, and welcome to my Wix guide! «

Maybe I'll get some cool thread graphics sometime.
If anything on the guide is confusing, wrong, or you feel something is missing, please give feedback! c:

The old guide is getting a bit old and there have been some major changes to Wix.
Toxxn, I hope you don't mind?


Announcements:

January 20, 2013 - ! Important !

Due to Wix disabling embed support, the current method is only good for users with existing Wix that don't need updating.
Otherwise, you will have these problems if you attempt to convert a new profile or update an old one:
- Changes made to your Wix do not show up on Gaia, even though they update properly on Wix
- New Wix profiles give an XML error instead of properly loading, even though they show up on Wix
This is affecting all users, and at the moment I have not found a workaround.
If you want to read a TL;DR version of the issue, or perhaps help me find a solution, please see this guild thread.

Please also note that response times will be slower due to IRL stuff.


The Guild


Check out the official Wix guild!
Post your profiles, get help, and see others' work!
The guild is free to join, and you'll get announcements about the latest and greatest tips and tutorials.




Important Note on Flash vs HTML Wix !!


Wix has recently created another way to make pages using HTML5.
These pages are not compatible with Gaia, however, so make sure you make a Flash profile.
(to check if your profile is Flash, right click it - if it says something about Adobe or Flash, that's good)
For more information on how to get the Flash version, see the getting started with Wix post.
Note that there is no way to convert an HTML Wix to a Flash one, sorry.


Important Note on Selling Wix Profiles


Selling Wix profiles is a violation of the Gaia ToS, as you do not have sufficient rights to the generator or most of its content.
For more information, please see this sticky.


Wix to Gaia Code Converter


Just here for the converter? Click here.


Navigation


1. Welcome / Intro (this post)
2. Getting Started With Wix
3. Getting Your Source Code
4. Converting Your Source Code (+CSS)
5. Common Questions & Problems
6. Credits & Other Info (U/C)
7. Quote post for faster responses

[Horntastic]

» Getting Started With Wix «
Any profiles created after January 2013 will not embed properly on Gaia.
Any profiles updated after January 2013 will not update properly on Gaia.
Please see the first post for more details.

This portion of the guide will help you get started on a new profile with the correct version of Wix.
I will not go into details on how to create your Wix page - experiment with the tools, most are fairly intuitive.
If you have issues, try also looking around in the help sections of Wix's site.

Images are under all the spoiler buttons, click to expand!

The front page of Wix: click the create button.




Go to the Flash template page.
Only Flash Wix are compatible with Gaia. This is very important!
Follow the directions below, or try this link to go straight there.








Choose a template to start with.
On the top left, you can make it show various template types, including blank ones.




Customize your profile!
On some templates you may be able to switch between the express and normal editor.
This guide's publishing screenshots will be from the normal editor view.

[Horntastic]

» Getting Your Source Code «
Any profiles created after January 2013 will not embed properly on Gaia.
Any profiles updated after January 2013 will not update properly on Gaia.
Please see the first post for more details.

This portion of the guide will help you find the source code for your Wix.
Note that this step will fail if you did not choose a Flash template as detailed in the above post.

Images are under all the spoiler buttons, click to expand!

If the page editor isn't already opened, open it.
Go to your "My Account" page and click the edit button for your profile.
(right click and open in a new tab - this will make it easier to open the source on Chrome & FF)
If you have not closed the editor since starting on a new template or since changing its dimensions, close and reopen it now.




If you haven't published your page since your last changes, do so now.
Click the green publish button and go through the screens.
Note that there will be no embed button, but that's ok!
If your publish button isn't green, make sure you made a Flash template.




Open the source of the page.
Chrome & FF (Windows):

Click on the address bar, then press Ctrl + U. Mac users may be able to do the same with Command, but I haven't tested.
Safari (Mac):

Safari menu > Preferences > Advanced > Check "Show Develop menu in menu bar".
Then go Develop Menu > Show Page Source
This may be easier if the editor is opened in a new tab.
Other browsers will be added as I figure them out.
Copy everything on the window that comes up & keep it somewhere safe - you will need it for future steps.

[Horntastic]

» Converting Your Source Code «
Any profiles created after January 2013 will not embed properly on Gaia.
Any profiles updated after January 2013 will not update properly on Gaia.
Please see the first post for more details.

(&Getting Your Profile Code - CSS)
This portion of the guide will help you change the source you got in the last step to Gaia-compatible codes.
(if you would like to see images in this section, let me know)

Using the converter
(this is the easy method, and it will generate custom CSS to fit your profile size)


1. Go to the converter site.
2. Paste in the source code you got from last section.
3. Click the "click to convert" button.
4. Keep this window open, you'll need the codes.


Converting by hand

This is harder now, so I recommend using the converter.
If you really want to do it by hand, please PM me.

Adding the codes to Gaia
(this should be the same whether or not you used the converter)


1. Open up your profile and click the "edit my profile" link in the top left corner.
2. Add a new media panel and save.
3. Delete all other panels on the profile.
4. Click the edit button on the media panel and paste in the "media code" from the converter. Update it.
5. Click the theme button on the menu, then the CSS tab. Paste in the "CSS" from the converter.
6. Update, save and view your profile. Ta-da!
6a. You may have to re-position floating avis and pics due to the code that centers the profile.

[Horntastic]

» Common Questions & Problems «

This section of the guide is an FAQ.

Very Common Issues
Any profiles created after January 2013 will not embed properly on Gaia.
Any profiles updated after January 2013 will not update properly on Gaia.
Please see the first post for more details.


1.1) There is no embed button when I publish my profile.

This now occurs whether or not you made a Flash template.
If you haven't created/updated your profile since January, use this guide to put it on your profile.
Otherwise, read the announcement in the first post - due to changes in Wix your profile won't work right.

1.2) How do I get my contact links to add to my profile?

See this guide for a list of contact links you can use.

1.3) My buttons don't do anything when I click them.

Make sure that all buttons are set to open in a new tab/window.
Same tab/window opening is not supported on Gaia profiles.

1.4) The profile I just made is showing an error message instead of the profile

This is a known issue, go read the announcements in the first post.


Other Wix Issues


2.1) How do I add my or my friends' avatars to the page?

You can add your avi using the drag & drop avi adder - the newest version of the code will center these along with your Wix.
(make sure you add the avis/images after you add the Wix CSS or they may change positions)
Note that if you put an image of your avi in your Wix using the Wix editor, it will not update.

2.2) How do I add my wishlist/recent visitors/comments/other dynamic section to my Wix?

The short answer to this is that you really can't, as Wix is static, which means it doesn't change once you save it.
Depending on the section, you can add its contents (like item thumbnails for the wishlist) to the Wix, but it won't update.
You can also add the section outside the Wix (make sure to put it in the same column).
If you want you can then make it match a bit better using CSS.

2.3) Can I add playlist.com/mixpod/etc to my Wix?

As far as I know this is not possible.
You can use Wix's media players, which accept MP3s and Youtube.
Or, you could add the other media player outside (make sure it's in the same column) of the Wix.
Keep in mind that hidden media can be more than a bit annoying since there's no way to turn it off.

2.4) I published my page and converted the code, but it's blank/the same as the template I used.

Try saving, closing the editor, then opening the editor and getting/converting the source code again.
This sometimes happens, usually on new profiles, but I haven't been able to reproduce the glitch.

2.5) My profile has white around it, what happened?

If you did not use the converter, try using it to get your CSS, it should fit better.
If you are still having the issue, make sure the profile is not taller than it is wide.
Due to the current sizing of Wix's Flash container, these do not convert well on Gaia.
(if you really like your profile, you could change the "html, body" background to white so it's less noticable)
To change the height of the profile, open the Wix editor then click Settings at the top then appearance.
Uncheck the aspect ratio box then change the height to be no greater than the width.

2.6) My page loads and loads and never finishes, what's wrong?

This is most commonly caused by an error in converting the code.
Make sure there is no space between the ? and the rest of the code, and you've removed all the stuff with the <> brackets.


Misc Questions


3.1) Can I PM you?

Yes, but try reading through the guide and posting in it for help first.
You can also look for help and/or advice in the Wix Guild.

3.2) Can you make me a Wix (or normal) profile?

Nope, sorry, I'm pretty busy irl and not that artsy anyway.
There are people out there who make Wix for free, though - look in Services and Art Freebies.
(check the Personalized Graphics subforum of the Mini Shops if you want to commission a regular profile)

3.3) Can I buy/sell a Wix profile?

No, this is a violation of the Gaia ToS.
Please see this sticky for more information.

[Horntastic]

» Credits & Other Info «

TBA
Major props to Toxxn for the original guide and for creating the guild!

[Horntastic]

» Quote this for fast responses! «
Please read the red announcement in the first post regarding new/updated profiles before quoting this.