Please leave a message for Deb if you are inadvertently missing a badge (or if you spot any other user who is missing one):
Note:
As you contribute more and more, you'll get awarded higher badges. To see the various contributor levels, see the Related question.
The badges are added to your profile by the Community Assistants.If you are missing a badge, please leave a message for Deb."UserDiscuss:Deb"
Silver ContributorThe badge marking the fact that you are a Silver Contributor - that is, 5,000 contributions - will automatically be placed on your profile. Please leave a message for Deb if you are missing a badge (or if you spot any other user who is missing one):"UserDiscuss:Deb"
Gold ContributorThe badge marking the fact that you are a Gold Contributor - that is, 25,000 contributions - will automatically be placed on your profile. Please leave a message for Deb if you are missing a badge (or if you spot any other user who is missing one):"UserDiscuss:Deb"
The Top Contributor badges are given out with the WAmmys. When they come, so will your badge.
Your user name is listed on the WAmmy award winners page, a badge is placed on your profile (with information about which WAmmy category you won), and of course, the prestige of being a top contributor on Answers.
Yes, you can actually lose badges. For example, if you are a Supervisor, and you have been inactive for months or have been blocked, your Supervisor badge will be removed. However, the one badge that cannot be taken away from you (even after being blocked) is your Contributor Level Badge. Any Contributor badge (ruby, silver, etc.) will not be removed.
You just ask or answer a question, and you automatically become a contributor. If you mean how do you get the badge that says "contributor," you have to sign up for the site. Any registered user who hasn't moved on to a different badge will have the contributor badge.
If the SPA badge disappears from your profile you probably have been removed from the SPA program. This could be a result of a user being inactive for a long period of time. If you are still interested in being a member of SPA you should contact Stupid little genius.
When you want to unsubscribe and stop being a contributor on Answers.com, you will need to contact the company to have the profile deleted. Go to the bottom of the page and click the contact us link. This will take you to a form where you can request anything.
If you want to stop contributing, you simply stop. However, the site and your profile will be here when you come back--which we hope you will do!
You get badges by completing certain set goals or joining programs. All the badges are explained out in the help center. If you believe you have earned a badge you can email: communityadvisor@wikianswers.com
If you mean contributor badges, they come from doing various things. For instance, there is a badge just for joining. Then there is the new Trusted Contributor badge. That comes from being faithful on the site. The program badges come from joining programs. If you work hard, follow the rules, and luck out, you may become a supervisor, and there are badges for different types of supervisors. The easiest way to start in the supervisor direction is to request TIP membership.Now if you mean avatars, it depends on how you joined. If you joined using Facebook, your Facebook avatar is your default Answers avatar. Otherwise, you would need to update it from your Answers profile so you can have one at all.