Inserting an image to a message post or attaching images to a post or creating a gallery

Question

Hi:
I'm trying to either attach an image to a message post or insert it in-line with a message.  I've read several references to this ability perhaps being something that will happen "soon", but those messages that refer to this are dated in August of 2009.  Here it is December and I still can't figure out how.
The online help says very clearly:
How do I insert an image in a post?
You insert an image the same way as you did before, but now you have more choices about where the image comes from and how it looks. You can insert an image from your computer (this uploads the image to your gallery), from your image gallery (if the image has been approved), or from another location on the Web.
To insert an image in a post:
Start a new post.
You can insert images anywhere: in messages, replies, blog articles, ideas, or comments.
Click the Insert Image button in the editor's tool bar (it looks like a tree).
Well, I don't know how you could do it "before", but there is no "Insert Image" button in the editor's toolbar at all.
There are also messages in this forum that say you can paste from a Word document (there IS a "Paste from Word" icon on the toolbar.)  However, when I paste from word, the images in my Word document are lost.
Finally, I thought I'd post the images in a gallery.  Again the online help says:
To upload an image to your image gallery:
Go to your Profile page and click the View Image Gallery link.
Click Browse to select an image file to be uploaded.
If the image is small enough (the size limit is set by your community), the image is uploaded. A preview of the image appears so that you can make sure you uploaded the right image.
There is no "View Image Gallery" link on my profile page.
Now, I am a computer consultant and therefore (hopefully) very computer-savvy, so this is not an issue with me being a forum "novice."  But I've always had issues with help documents that say "click on this icon" and don't show a screenshot of where the icon is.
And, I can't PROVE that my profile page doesn't have a gallery link because I can't upload a screenshot! <grin>.
So, can anyone clarify if and how we can upload images?  Or if there is a definitive help document that lays this out, provide a link to that document?  The help "search" function is pretty weak, because it does a FORUM search on any term you type in, rather than restricting it to help documents.
There's also some references to having to be a "silver member" in order to upload images, but no information on what is required to become such a member.
Thanks
Ron

Answer 1

As stated in the Community Ranking Structure post on the Announcements section:
Many community members will ask (and have asked in the past) exactly what the criteria is for achieving each rank in the hierarchy.  To eliminate the likelihood of system abuse or forum ‘rank climbing’, we have decided not to publicize the exact ranking criteria.  That said, community members will gain higher ranking by excelling in the activity components below.  The list is not in order of importance and some elements are weighted greater than others.
Kudos Given
Kudos Received
Length of Time on the Community
Number of logins
Posts marked as “Accepted Solution”
Total number of Posts (minus deleted posts)
Total Number of Tags applied throughout community
Time spent online in the Community Forums
As members achieve higher rankings within the Community Forums, they will automatically receive additional functionality – while maintaining the functionality rights previously achieved.
This is done to prevent spamming and trolling of the forums and to prevent objectionable content from being uploaded to the site.  There are legal issues involved with this and it preserves the integrity of the forums to grant certain permissions at certain ranks.
The ranking structure undergoes periodic review and this may change in the future -- but no guarantees. 
If a forum member gives an answer you like, give them the Kudos they deserve. If a member gives you the answer to your question, mark the answer that solved your issue as the accepted solution.