Images are not preserved in Outlook HTML signature

Question

I have created the following HTML signature file for my Windows mail:

       <table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
       <tr>
       <td>Regards</td>
     </tr>
      <tr>
       <td><img src="http://images.Google.com/intl/en_ALL/images/logos/images_logo_lg.gif" align="Signature Picture" /></td>
   </tr>
  </table>

It's working fine if I send a new mail, but when I forward an existing mail item, the image isn't displayed.

Upon inspecting the source of the mail, I found the following change in the signature image:

     <IMG height=128 alt="Compnay Logo" 
   src="mhtml:{4B829C94-37FC-44B9-A60C-CC4BB1E0AE9B}mid://00000152/!http://images.Google.com/intl/en_ALL/images/logos/images_logo_lg.gif" width=206 border=0>

How can I fix this behavior? Or is there another way to put the image in my signature that will avoid this issue?

Answer 1

It looks like Outlook has embedded the image in the mail message (using MHTML format) instead of using link.

Outlook sometimes removes embedded images when forwarding (maybe if the message is sent outside your mail server?). I have not found any information about this in Outlook help files, nor any setting to control this. It may be done in the mail server also.

You could try to use link instead of embedded image. (In this case, the image has to be available at some web server.) On Outlook 2003, you can select:
Tools -> Options -> Mail Format -> Internet format button
and uncheck the option "When an HTML message contains pictures located on the internet, send copy of the picture instead of the reference to their location".

Note, however, that many email clients do not show any external images in received messages by default. In addition, messages with external image links may be detected as spam.

In any case it is not good idea to have a signature that is an image only. If the image is removed for one reason or another, there will be no signature at all.