3D Map Presentation – A Systematic Evaluation of Important Graphic Aspects

Today, the availability of digital geo-data is increasing rapidly throughout the world, a trend that undoubtedly will continue for the foreseeable future. Among the large geo-data sets available to cartographers are digital terrain models, as well as accurate topographic and thematic data sets about countless physical, social, and economic phenomena. In addition to their geographic coverage and thematic content, geo-data sets generally are available in vector and raster formats. To complement the growing availability of data, rapid development of computer technology during the last several decades permits cartographers to handle large high-resolution data sets more or less easily (Haeberling 1999). Maps and map-related representations, such as perspective representations, are now produced digitally (fig. 1). Digitally rendered work represents a significant advance over the pre-digital era when perspective representations were mainly sketched by hand and printed on paper, and physical 3D models were constructed from plaster and wood.