I want to add a background image outside the main blog area but I can't tell if the instructions under "Body, Text & Links" where it says, "Setting a background image for the body:" would give me a background image within the blog or around it. I want an image around/outside it. In other themes, I can go to Appearance, Background in the Dashboard -- that's what I want.
Thanks!

Just throw a background in and see what happens.

Nothing happens at all. I don't see it anywhere, inside or out.
There are a number of other images in that images folder-I don't know why though. Maybe they came with Atahualpa? Most are very small GIFs.
My blog's home page is http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com/pptblog/

what code did you add to the theme options?
what option did you add it to?
what folder did you add your image to?

No code.
I added the image to http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com/pptb...alpa361/images
that's how I understood the instructions under ATO> Overall Style & Config> Body, Text & Links
It read:
Setting a background image for the body:
background: url(/pptblog/wordpress/wp-content/themes/atahualpa361/images/backgr.gif) repeat top left;
To use your own image upload it to /pptblog/wordpress/wp-content/themes/atahualpa361/images/

ok, now go tell me what CSS rules you have in the 'Body, Text & Links' option.

OK.
font-family: tahoma, arial, sans-serif;
font-size: 0.9em;
line-height: 1.5em;
color: #000000;
background: #ffffff;

Does that background rule?
This might sound stupid to you, but because of the text just above the code box that says, "Set padding here, instead of margin on the layout container (see tab "Layout") because that won't work for the bottom, in Internet Explorer." I thought that the code area applied only to padding.
What's the format to add the image to the CSS code?
Thanks!

the Example is just that: an example. the code you see is what is being applied. Since the 'background' rule only has one option '#ffffff;' it is applying a white (#ffffff) background to the site. You need to replace that with code like teh example shows.

So I tried that and got the background, but it applies the background to the blog space (inside the blog), as if the blog background is transparent. I want the area with text to be white.

Does Atathualpa remove the Appearance> Background Dashboard item? On another site with another theme, that does exactly what I want.

There are many places you can set a background image (or color) and they stack on top of each other.

Think af a bunch of transparent sheets. The BODY is the first sheet and you can color it or add a background Then the header lays over it. If the header is transparent, the body image/color will show up. Then you have the sidebars and the center area - same thing goes, if tehy are transparent, the body image/colot shows thru.

Then you have the posts with there own possibility to have an image/color and they lay on top of the other sections.

Play with the different areas and use colors - easier to see the results.