Live Search Branding Guidelines
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10/16/2008
This topic provides guidelines for branding a Live Search application on a Windows Embedded NavReady powered device. This topic also includes the LS4D logo guidelines.
Branding is the emotional positioning of a product as perceived by its customers. Product branding is achieved through a combination of factors. This includes the product name and logo, use of color, text, graphics, and sound, the style of various other design elements, marketing, and most important, the attributes of the product experience itself.
Brand Signature Overview
A brand signature is a branding element that communicates brand identity and consists of elements such as the brand trademarked symbol, the brand name, or the brand logotype.
There are three kinds of Live Search brand signatures:
- Live Search text
- Live Search logo
- Windows Live button
Live Search brand signatures can be used in the user interface (UI) of a Live Search application, or in printed or online materials that describe your Live Search application.
Note
The Live Search brand signature must be used by the Live Search application.
These three kinds of Live Search brand signatures are described in this topic.
Live Search Logo Guidelines
Brand the Screen with the Search Box and Software Input Panel (SIP)
The Live Search brand signature is required to appear on the same UI screen as the Search box and the software input panel (SIP) that are used together for constructing keyword queries for the Live Search Engine.
One of the following Live Search brand signatures must be used on this UI screen:
- The text string "Live Search"
- The Live Search logo
Optionally, the Windows Live button can be also used, in addition to one of the Live Search brand signatures in the previous list.
Brand the Input to Submit Search Requests by Category
The Live Search brand signature must appear on the same UI screen that is used for submitting category queries for the Live Search Engine.
One of the Live Search brand signatures must be used on this UI screen:
- The text string "Live Search"
- The Live Search logo
Optionally, the Windows Live button can be also used, in addition to one of the Live Search brand signatures in the previous list.
When used with the Search box or with the Category search UI screen, the Live Search brand signature should be easy to see and easy to read.
Put the Live Search brand signature in a location on the screen where it has enough spacing apart from other UI elements, and so that it appears uniform and balanced, and does not appear cluttered or on a visually-busy, distracting background.
A minimum clearance must be maintained between the signature and other graphical elements. For more information, see Windows Live Button Minimum Size and Brand Signature Spacing in this topic.
When a Live Search brand signature is used with maps or photography, the brand signature should reside in an empty screen area apart from other UI items or areas of the photograph that draw visual focus away from the brand signature.
Do not put the Live Search brand signature in a location on the screen where it competes with the focus of another image, and do not put it in a visually-busy, distracting screen area.
Live Search Text Brand Signature Guidelines
The Live Search text brand signature includes the brand text that reads Live Search, without logotype or trademarks. For more information about font guidelines for the Live Search text brand signature, see Font Guidelines.
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Live Search Text Trademark Usage
The first time that Microsoft Live Search is mentioned in copy content in your materials, it should include the registered trademark symbol; for example, Microsoft® Live Search.
Trademark symbols in online content for Microsoft Live Search must appear at first mention in each topic or article, and not necessarily on each page.
On successive mentions, you can remove the trademark symbol and also remove "Microsoft" from the text brand signature so that it reads Live Search.
Live Search Text Elements
Never abbreviate Microsoft Live Search. For example, do not use MSLive, MLS, and so on.
Never use Microsoft in the possessive form, such as "Microsoft's Live Search features are excellent." Instead, use the company name as an adjective. For example, you can say "Microsoft Live Search features are excellent."
Do not use the word Live in figurative speech, or in a play-on-words. For example, do not use "Microsoft Lives with you."
Live Search Logo Brand Signature Guidelines
The Live Search logo consists of both the Windows Live button and the Live Search logotype. In the Live Search logo, both items are always used together.
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Live Search Logo Orientation
You can use two different orientations, or angles, for positioning this brand signature:
- Horizontal orientation
- Vertical orientation
The Live Search brand signature should never vary in orientation from how it appears in the artwork provided in the product. Always position the Live Search logo at a direct 90 degrees vertical angle, or at a 0 degrees horizontal angle. Never tilt it or position it at an angle that is not perpendicular.
Although we prefer the version of the brand signature with horizontal orientation and reverse-color with dark background and white letters, other versions can be used, depending on which style is most appropriate for the specific UI design.
For examples, see %_WINCEROOT%\PUBLIC\SERVERS\OAK\files\brands\search.
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Live Search Logo Guidelines
Remember that the Live Search logo should:
- Never appear connected to, or as part of, any other symbol or icon. However, the trademark symbol (™) should always appear after the Windows Live button.
- Never be contained in a box, circle, or other shape.
- Never be modified in any way. Do not separate the Windows Live button from the Live Search logotype, and do not recombine the artwork elements together with other logos or graphics to create new artwork. Use the artwork as it is provided from the Windows Live branding team.
The Live Search logo brand signature should also not be used by third parties without obtaining written permission from Microsoft, and obtaining approval from the Legal and Corporate Affairs (LCA) department. For more information, see this Microsoft Web site.
To start the permission process, send e-mail to wlbrand@microsoft.com.
Any deviation from these guidelines must be reviewed and approved by wlbrand@microsoft.com
Live Search Logo Color
The words Live Search should always appear in either black or white.
Color is an important visual element of the UI, and color has associated meanings and elicits emotional responses. The full-color, illuminated version of the Live Search signature represents the clarity and richness of the product itself, and should be used whenever possible.
Do not create a single-color version of the Windows Live button. For example, do not use a single-color button in all blue, all red, all green, or all yellow.
When it is impossible to use the full-color version of the Live Search signature, the black-and-white line-art version of the brand signature can be used.
Note
A flat-color line-art version of the signature is also available for very limited use.
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Never use colors other than the color scheme shown or provided in the product.
Live Search Logo Trademark Symbol
When you use the Live Search logo brand signature, include the Windows brand trademark symbol as follows:
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For small-size applications, please adjust the size of the trademark symbol so that it is decipherable, but not disproportionately large. Always use the Live Search signature exactly as it is provided. Never crop it, outline it, change its colors, rearrange the order of the pieces, skew it, or modify it in any way.
Windows Live Button Brand Signature Guidelines
The Windows Live button is the Live Search button signature.
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The Live Search brand signature can be displayed on its own and does not have to accompany the Windows Live Button.
When the Windows Live button and the Live Search brand signature coexist in the same location on the screen, the Windows Live button must be at least as wide as the brand signature and it should be located in a lower position on the artwork, to emphasize the effect of the Windows Live button.
Windows Live Button Minimum Size
The following picture shows the smallest acceptable size for the Windows Live button.
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Never use a size for the Windows Live button that is smaller than this size, either in printed materials or online materials.
For print: x must be greater than or equal to 0.75 inches
For online use: x must be greater than or equal to 54 pixels.
Windows Live Button Usage Requirements
The following describes specific implementations of the Windows Live button that are not permitted:
- Never use the button in a manner or concept that might make it the subject of disrespect or abuse.
- Do not modify the button in any way. Use the artwork as it is provided. For example:
.jpg "Cc664401.c562d96b-a2c9-4205-8557-765bdf53a757(en-us,MSDN.10).jpg")
- Never position the button directly on photography. This includes images of people, landscapes, or other real-world environments.
- Never use multiple button graphics on any single surface. For example:
.jpg "Cc664401.13e3b8c1-587a-4bbf-abe6-297d7a156766(en-us,MSDN.10).jpg")
- Never use the button as a Web icon, navigational button, or UI programming element.
Windows Live Button Drop Shadow
A drop shadow makes a brand signature stand out against the background.
When you put the full-color Windows Live button brand signature on a color background or on a dark image, the drop shadow that appears underneath the Windows glass flag should be multiplied at 100 percent over the background color. It should never appear lighter than the background, to help the Windows flag be more prominent.
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General Brand Signature Usage Guidelines
Brand the Search Box for Live Search
The Search box, also known as a Live Search search bar, is the UI element used to type a query and send it to the Live Search Engine.
The following Live Search bar artwork can be used to create a Search box for use with the Live Search application.
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Be aware that this graphic should not be used as a substitute for the Live Search brand logo type.
The following are key usage guidelines for the Search box:
- The outside rule color of the border is gray, hexadecimal #9aafb8, CMYK 39-18-13-2.
- The color of the magnifying-glass icon box must always be green, hexadecimal #549c00, PMS 362. The image of the magnifying glass itself must be white. The magnifying box is also known as the search symbol.
- The background color of the Search box must be white.
- The text in the search bar asset should be black, and in Verdana font. The Verdana font family in Light and Regular is the preferred font to represent online applications. Tahoma font is the second choice.
- The Search box can be expanded horizontally, but its width should never be less than the arithmetic result of 10 × its height.
- We recommend that you provide your own default wording for the prompt in the Search box, instead of the "Enter title of text" prompt, in the search bar asset. For example, you can provide an instruction, such as "Type to search", or you can indicate the scope of the search, such as "Search for locations".
For examples, see %_WINCEROOT%\PUBLIC\SERVERS\OAK\files\brands\search.
Live Search Taskbar Button
The taskbar is consistently displayed on the portable navigation device (PND) UI, regardless of which screen or menu the user is currently interacting with. For ease of discoverability for the Live Search application, you can create a Live Search taskbar button that always has presence on the taskbar.
The following Live Search brand signatures can be used as a button on the taskbar that links directly to the Live Search main menu:
- A button with the text "Live Search"
- A button with the Live Search logo
- The Windows Live button
Minimum Size of the Brand Signature
The following example provides dimensions for the smallest acceptable size for the Live Search brand signature.
.jpg "Cc664401.1dc3b1b8-6bdb-4c4b-ad85-c8f995392ab0(en-us,MSDN.10).jpg")
Never use the brand signature with a size smaller than this size, either online in your application, or in printed documentation or materials.
- For use in printed materials: x is greater than or equal to 0.85 inches (21.6 mm).
- For online use: x is greater than or equal to 60 pixels.
Spacing around the Brand Signature
The Live Search brand signature should be easy to see and easy to read.
Put the Live Search brand signature in a location on the screen where it is apart from other UI elements, and where it appears uniform and balanced, and does not appear cluttered or on a visually-busy, distracting background.
A minimum clearance must be maintained between the brand signature and other UI elements.
The amount of clear space (x) around the brand signature is equal to the x height of the lowercase letters in the word Search, as illustrated in the following picture:
.jpg "Cc664401.d8fc8598-3575-4f1f-afe0-e444affab628(en-us,MSDN.10).jpg")
See Also
Concepts
Main Menu Guidelines
Search Results Guidelines
Microsoft Brand Signature Guidelines