The Image Bar adds life, color, and variety to the BU Core Design. The images set the tone for the site.

The Image Bar also offers a lot of variety. Images can correspond with navigation menu headings or can be used without a navigation menu. Common variations are noted below.

Photos in the image bar can also serve a functional page elements. For example, images can be randomly populated in the Image Bar and link to a corresponding site or page when clicked. See examples of this on the Academics family of pages.

Variations

1) Images correspond with navigation links - The image bar can accommodate a maximum of 8 images. Not all sites will have 8 links in the Primary Navigation Bar, so the number of images can be reduced. Visitor Center uses 7 images. Staff Central uses 6 images. Faculty Central uses 5 images. When using images that correspond with the links in the Primary Navigation Bar, the selected images usually match thematically with the topic of the navigation item with which they correspond.

2) Images without navigation - The Image Bar can be used without the Primary Navigation Bar. The number of images and their sizes can be varied. Four images are used very effectively on University Relations. When the Primary Navigation Bar is not used, the Content Navigation column effectively serves as the sitewide navigation menu.

3) Image(s) independent of navigation links - For a simpler design with minimal development overhead, one image can be used throughout -- such as on Office of Housing. This variant can be useful when you have a mixture of both short and longer text labels in your main navigation categories. When using this variant, it is especially important to choose a strong and vibrant image that works well in the available space.

4) Images are varied - The number and width of images can be varied for greater visual impact and/or to accommodate an odd or irregular number of main navigational links -- such as Office of Rental Property Management.

5) No images - The Image Bar can be eliminated on sites where the content is primarily task-oriented (such as the Search - Directory - Index family of pages) or where a large, prominent image is used in the Content Area and would compete with photos in the Image Bar (such as Commencement).

Regardless of how many images are used in the Image Bar, spacing above, between, and below the images remain consistent on BU Core Design pages.

• Title Bar
• Image Bar
• Primary Navigation Bar
• Secondary Navigation Bar
• Content Navigation
• Content Area
• BU Help Bar
• Page Signature

NIS  |  OIT  |   August 22, 2006