{"id":1255592,"date":"2021-06-10T15:38:51","date_gmt":"2021-06-10T22:38:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=1255592"},"modified":"2024-01-11T08:29:24","modified_gmt":"2024-01-11T16:29:24","slug":"polishing-your-halo","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-living-atlas\/mapping\/polishing-your-halo","title":{"rendered":"Polishing Your Halo"},"author":4491,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":""},"categories":[22941],"tags":[23201,34651,40161,31301],"industry":[],"product":[36581,36551],"class_list":["post-1255592","blog","type-blog","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mapping","tag-cartographic-design","tag-labels","tag-living-atlas-of-the-world","tag-symbology","product-arcgis-living-atlas","product-arcgis-online"],"acf":{"short_description":"Improving the legibility of labels using haloes without breaking your map","flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

I\u2019ve got a visceral aversion to those blocky white \u2018halos\u2019 around labels that used to be such a part of the look of an online map. It goes back to my days as a print cartographer, when we did all that we could to break lines and symbols around labels without<\/em> affecting the background. In the manual cartography days that meant painting the lines back from labels on a film negative. On computers we developed sophisticated tricks involving overprint settings and 1% color values (They worked really well, but they confused and irritated our printers!). Eventually we had software that could block background symbols, selectively \u2013 what we called \u2018variable depth of mask\u2019. We could block out road casings for example, but leave the background colors intact.<\/p>\n

But online maps are different. They work in RGB, and they are dynamic, which doesn\u2019t lend itself to this type of solution. In the early days the screen resolution made the halo an essential part of achieving any sort of clarity. These days resolution has improved to the point where an online image is as clear (if not more so) than a printed image. But despite that the halo is not going away. In fact, my recent work with trying to build accessible basemaps has proved that if anything it is coming back. The relationship between the text and its background is a key part of the developing standards for visual accessibility online.<\/p>\n

So how can we minimize the destructive effect of the halo? Well, it\u2019s a lot easier than it used to be, and we have various tricks at our disposal now.<\/p>\n

The Problem<\/h3>\n

I work with the Basemaps Team, and the complexity of most basemaps epitomizes the problem:\u00a0 How do you maintain the legibility of labels over the top of a dense network of lines and symbols \u2026 and do this without breaking up or concealing the information behind? Well, you can subdue the symbolization so there is nothing that competes with the label, but that may give you a washed-out and confusing map. Or you can, (and this pains me!} \u2026 add a halo to the label.<\/p>\n

Polishing<\/h1>\n

Here is an example of a label over a busy and intrusive background. This is adapted from the National Geographic Style<\/a> basemap:<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1255632,"id":1255632,"title":"Halo_NoHalo","filename":"Halo_NoHalo-scaled.jpg","filesize":328166,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-scaled.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-living-atlas\/mapping\/polishing-your-halo\/halo_nohalo","alt":"The San Francisco map label over a strong street pattern.","author":"4491","description":"","caption":"","name":"halo_nohalo","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1255592,"date":"2021-06-10 15:41:56","modified":"2021-11-22 23:18:09","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":2560,"height":873,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-scaled.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":158,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-scaled.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":262,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-scaled.jpg","large-width":1920,"large-height":655,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-1536x524.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":524,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-2048x698.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":698,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-826x282.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":282,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_NoHalo-1920x655.jpg","wide_image-width":1920,"wide_image-height":655}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

And here it has a blocky white halo \u2013 the sort that I hate so much!<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1255652,"id":1255652,"title":"Halo_WhiteBlocky","filename":"Halo_WhiteBlocky.jpg","filesize":65643,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-living-atlas\/mapping\/polishing-your-halo\/halo_whiteblocky","alt":"The San Francisco map label with a broad white halo","author":"4491","description":"","caption":"","name":"halo_whiteblocky","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1255592,"date":"2021-06-10 15:44:42","modified":"2021-11-22 23:18:19","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1000,"height":341,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":158,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":262,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":341,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":341,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":341,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky-826x282.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":282,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteBlocky.jpg","wide_image-width":1000,"wide_image-height":341}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Don\u2019t make it too big<\/h3>\n

A label halo doesn\u2019t need to be so big that it dissolves into a single block. Adjust the width down until you find the point at which you feel it no longer works, then nudge it up again. The value you end up with may depend on the size of your labels and the amount of interference they face.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1255662,"id":1255662,"title":"Halo_WhiteFine","filename":"Halo_WhiteFine.jpg","filesize":68646,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-living-atlas\/mapping\/polishing-your-halo\/halo_whitefine","alt":"The San Francisco map label with a thin white halo","author":"4491","description":"","caption":"","name":"halo_whitefine","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1255592,"date":"2021-06-10 15:46:06","modified":"2021-11-22 23:18:32","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1000,"height":341,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":158,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":262,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":341,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":341,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":341,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine-826x282.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":282,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_WhiteFine.jpg","wide_image-width":1000,"wide_image-height":341}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Don\u2019t use white<\/h3>\n

Well, if the background of your map is predominantly white then it makes sense, but if not, white can be jarring. So, change the color of the halo to be the same as the background. If you don\u2019t have one predominant color, then change the halo to something neutral. Experiment with blends of all the colors you have back there to find a suitable compromise.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1255682,"id":1255682,"title":"Halo_Color","filename":"Halo_Color.jpg","filesize":66432,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-living-atlas\/mapping\/polishing-your-halo\/halo_color","alt":"The San Francisco map label with a halo in the same color as the background","author":"4491","description":"","caption":"","name":"halo_color","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1255592,"date":"2021-06-10 15:47:08","modified":"2021-11-22 23:18:45","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1000,"height":341,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":158,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":262,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":341,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":341,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":341,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color-826x282.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":282,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color.jpg","wide_image-width":1000,"wide_image-height":341}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Add Transparency<\/h3>\n

Transparency (or Opacity if you are working with vector tiles) is your friend in this circumstance! You may be able to set it as high as 50% and get enough of a \u2018muting\u2019 effect to make the halo work. If you are using a color halo, then try adjusting it a bit, and balance the color against the level of transparency to make the halo as innocuous as possible. Or in this example, with a high degree of transparency set, white may be more effective \u2013 it will adopt a subdued version of the background color.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1255692,"id":1255692,"title":"Halo_White50T","filename":"Halo_White50T.jpg","filesize":68065,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-living-atlas\/mapping\/polishing-your-halo\/halo_white50t","alt":"The San Francisco map label with a semi-transparent white halo","author":"4491","description":"","caption":"","name":"halo_white50t","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1255592,"date":"2021-06-10 15:48:21","modified":"2021-11-22 23:18:58","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1000,"height":341,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":158,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":262,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":341,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":341,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":341,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T-826x282.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":282,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_White50T.jpg","wide_image-width":1000,"wide_image-height":341}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Vector Tiles<\/h3>\n

If you are working with vector tiles there is another tool you can use. Open your map into the Vector Tile Style editor<\/a>, choose a label, and look for the font settings. You will find halo color, width and opacity (opacity is the reverse of transparency \u2013 the lower the opacity setting, the higher the transparency), but you will also find halo blur<\/strong>. So now we have another option \u2013 Use the blur setting to soften the edges of the halo. Experiment with adjusting the width of the halo and the blur value to find a good combination.<\/p>\n

This example has a slightly lighter version of the background color with a blur<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1255702,"id":1255702,"title":"Halo_Color_Blur","filename":"Halo_Color_Blur.jpg","filesize":66313,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-living-atlas\/mapping\/polishing-your-halo\/halo_color_blur","alt":"The San Francisco map label with a blurred white halo","author":"4491","description":"","caption":"","name":"halo_color_blur","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1255592,"date":"2021-06-10 15:49:16","modified":"2021-11-22 23:19:10","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1000,"height":341,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":158,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":262,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":341,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":341,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":341,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur-826x282.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":282,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Color_Blur.jpg","wide_image-width":1000,"wide_image-height":341}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

So haloes are good then …<\/h1>\n

They can be. I mentioned my work with accessible basemaps, and WCAG<\/a> guidelines for accessibility suggest that there should be a contrast ratio of 1:4.5 between a piece of text and its background. On maps, halos are an effective way to achieve this, and that\u2019s why I see them coming back.<\/p>\n

I would still rather not use them, but that’s a personal thing, at least in part.\u00a0 Anything you can do to make map information clearer is a good thing, but that means all<\/em> of it, and not just labels. So if you do use a halo, your aim is to make it\u00a0 as effective, but as invisible, as possible. If a user can read the labels on a map easily, but is not aware of how or why, then you have the balance about right. These concepts can be used, in any combination, to try to achieve this.<\/p>\n"}],"authors":[{"ID":4491,"user_firstname":"Andrew","user_lastname":"Skinner","nickname":"Andrew Skinner","user_nicename":"askinner","display_name":"Andy Skinner","user_email":"ASkinner@esri.com","user_url":"","user_registered":"2018-03-02 00:16:04","user_description":"Andy is a Cartographic Designer who has been building maps for 50 years. He has been working with Esri in Redlands for 16 years, most recently on the creation of some of Esri's vector basemaps, and the development of color ramps for ArcGIS Online. Prior to Esri, he was Manager of Cartographic Design at Rand McNally, and before that a Senior Cartographer at GeoSystems\/MapQuest. He is originally from England, and worked for a number of years at what is now the University of Derby before moving to the USA. Andy can be contacted at: askinner@esri.com","user_avatar":""}],"related_articles":[{"ID":1043071,"post_author":"4491","post_date":"2020-10-22 10:57:57","post_date_gmt":"2020-10-22 17:57:57","post_content":"","post_title":"Towards an Accessible Basemap","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"towards-an-accessible-basemap","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2020-11-04 12:25:42","post_modified_gmt":"2020-11-04 20:25:42","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=1043071","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"2","filter":"raw"},{"ID":1235262,"post_author":"4491","post_date":"2021-05-19 22:35:24","post_date_gmt":"2021-05-20 05:35:24","post_content":"","post_title":"A Gray Accessible Basemap","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"a-gray-accessible-basemap","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2021-05-19 22:35:24","post_modified_gmt":"2021-05-20 05:35:24","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=1235262","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":727542,"post_author":"6751","post_date":"2020-02-07 12:10:27","post_date_gmt":"2020-02-07 20:10:27","post_content":"","post_title":"New labels in Map Viewer","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"new-labels-in-map-viewer-beta","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2021-04-16 05:39:29","post_modified_gmt":"2021-04-16 12:39:29","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=727542","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"5","filter":"raw"}],"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Card_2.jpg","wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Halo_Banner_2024.jpg"},"yoast_head":"\nPolishing Your Halo %<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The pros and cons of using haloes for labels on maps, and how to improve them.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-living-atlas\/mapping\/polishing-your-halo\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Polishing Your Halo\" 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