Maps: Ubiquitous Part of Our Life

A visual representation of an area or space is a map. Mapsdepict and highlight the relation between the various elements of an area like objects, theme and regions. Maps are commonly used for correct geographical representation of a place, like accurate vector maps that you can get on net. It could be static or dynamic that represents the three dimensional space geometrically accurate. Maps of the larger area like countries or world are often either ‘physical’ or ‘political’. Idea behind ‘physical’ maps is to show features of geography of that place like soil types, mountains, road, railroad, buildings etc. while the purpose behind political maps is to show territorial borders.

Mapping can be described as the science or art. It is science because representation has to meet the certain exacting standards and an art because in mapping our earth is represented in a very artistic way. Millions of distance can be concluded in a point and many lakes and roads got disappeared on a million maps.

Categories of maps

Basically maps are divided into two categories namely raster maps and vector maps. Raster maps seem to be similar to photographs or in other words these maps are images of paper maps. It is very difficult to control each and every aspect of raster maps like layout and designs though it can be edit. Then how can someone, if wants, edit the maps and control all the aspect like layout and design simultaneously? The answer to this question is vector maps. Basically vector maps are made up of three entities, lines, points and shapes and these are very intelligent maps.

In vector maps points, are the symbols of schools, hospitals etc. and lines are the symbol of all entities which includes railways, road, streams etc. parks and large water bodies are represented by area or shape. Generally smaller the scale is, larger the detail on the map thus in a small scale map buildings or even your house are represented by areas or shapes.

Now a days GIS or geographic information system becomes the part and parcel of mapping environment. Catographic mapping is the small part of GIS. And most of the catographers use various computer graphics programmes even when GIS is not involved. There is a site about printable and editable maps of countries, continents and the world and it has free and premium maps which are large enough to print as a wall map.