imageWe are always big on customisation here at TechNorms. We create Windows 7 Themes as well as Google Chrome themes to make the computer and the browser look better.

So it is always good news when an online service gives more options for personalising the service.

Google has provided a few options for customising their services before. Gmail has options to change themes since quite a few days, but now Google has added yet another option.

Today they added a new feature to Gmail, which will let users choose their own pictures as background for their e-mail inbox. This combined with customization of links and text colour effectively lets you create your own Gmail themes.

Using Your Own Image As Background In Gmail:

Google just made an announcement on the Gmail Blog which said you can personalize the Gmail interface with your own photos, coming from either Google’s Picasa or your own hard drive. Lets see how this is done.

1) Click on the “Settings” option at the top right corner of the Gmail Inbox.

Gmail Settings Option

2) Click on the “Themes” tab and at bottom right corner and select the option “Create your own themes”

Themes Tab > Create Your Own Themes in Gmail

3) This will open a new window which lets you select the background, text and links colour.

Look for a small arrow at top left or bottom left corner and it will reveal the option to select a new image as background.

Creating Gmail Theme

4) At the bottom left corner, click on “Select” to choose the image of your choice. You can then choose the text and link colour that would go well with your image.

You can tile it horizontally, vertically or both.  The box, the text inside it as well as all the links can be customized by choosing the colour you want.  You can choose the background image either from your hard drive or your Picasa album.

Go ahead try it out and enjoy the new look!