The core of the UCSF web identity is the official UCSF web banner; this banner must appear on all official UCSF webpages. Failure to do so within a negotiated time after notification from UCSF Public Affairs could mean that the site will not be indexed in the UCSF search engine. Technical advice on how to implement the banner is available.

The official web banner includes the UCSF logo with the complete name of the institution — which links to the UCSF homepage — and navigational links to the “About UCSF” information page and UCSF Medical Center. The standard recommended configuration also includes a “Search UCSF” navigational link; an optional version without this link also is permissible, though in that case it is recommended that a link to the UCSF search page be incorporated somewhere on the page.

The banner is available in two configurations — with or without a “Search UCSF” link, as detailed above — and in four official colors — black, teal, and two gray alternatives. The teal and the gray are slightly different — they are truer to the UCSF web color palette — than those previously available. If you already are using an earlier version of the teal or gray banner available since January 2003, you may replace them with one of the new versions if you wish, but you are not required to. If you are not currently using one of the required banners, however, you must use one of the four color versions provided here. The black banner has not changed from the previously distributed version.

Banners for Viewing

Do not attempt to use these templates by saving them from your browser; download the packages below instead.

Banner Packages for Downloading

Download the appropriate package for your platform here. Each package contains the banner graphic in all four colors, plus the accompanying code. Windows packages require WinZip or Stuffit Expander to decode; Macintosh packages require Stuffit Expander 8.x Unix files are compressed with tar and gzip.

Banner Usage

The official UCSF web banner is placed flush with the top of each page, occupying no more than 40 pixels in height. The left side of the banner is positioned flush with the leftmost content on the page. No other navigational or design elements may be located above or to either side of the banner, nor may any other elements overwrite or intersect the banner. The solid color background may be extended to the right to the full width of the page or otherwise to the width of the content, as appropriate to the page design.

In the downloadable banner packages, the banner is offered for implementation as a client-side image map with an underlying GIF image incorporating the necessary logo signature and required links. Instructions for correctly incorporating the graphic, image map and embedded links within the website also are included in the banner packages. If the provided graphic banners and image maps do not meet the technical specifications for a specific website (e.g., specifications require text links rather than graphic links, etc.), please contact UCSF Public Affairs ( info@pubaff.ucsf.edu) for assistance in developing an approved code-based version of the banner. For consistency and ease of implementation, however, it is very strongly recommended that these image map versions be used.

As noted in the visual identity standards section on improper signature use, you may not redraw the logo, alter its shape or attempt to recreate it using a typeface; the logo graphics included in the banner packages — and only these graphics — must be used on University websites.

Banner Extension

If desired, it is permissible to include one additional navigation entry at the end of the required standard banner. This navigation is the link to the homepage of the specific site featured. For example, view a sample banner navigation for CVRI.

Note: only one additional navigation entry is permitted. Website designers and developers may not themselves attempt to add this navigational link to one of the standard banners from the banner packages; rather, a customized banner incorporating the additional link may be developed in consultation with UCSF Public Affairs ( info@pubaff.ucsf.edu).

If additional navigational links are desired, while they may not be included in the required standard banner, there are a variety of ways to incorporate them into the website. Along with the commonly used left-column navigation, for example, one could include a sub-banner immediately below the standard banner. An example of this is found on the main UCSF website at http://www.ucsf.edu/, where additional navigational links for various audiences — Students | Faculty & Staff | Postdocs | Patients | Alumni | Journalists — are incorporated into a coordinating sub-banner immediately below the required standard banner.

Please contact UCSF Public Affairs ( info@pubaff.ucsf.edu) for more information or for help incorporating the required standard banner into your official University website.