avatars as files? coded to http?

[TECK]

vB have an option to upload your avatar from an url location. does that mean it will upload the actual .gif into the database? or just the link? if it uploads the graphic file (i'm pretty sure it does this), then it becomes a big problem. if you have a large board, it will eat your space in no time.

now, can it be done to have the avatars pointing to a location? the same way as the [img]? so basically when you enter the url, it will grab the image from your url you entered, instead of storing it in database. the rest of rules aply the same way (size, dimension).

if i'm correct, none of the hacks available here can do this. let me know if i'm wrong.
thank you for taking the time to answer this post.