Cartography has been my window to the world from an early age: at primary school, it taught me through my first atlas about the world: that it was round, that the Earth surface consisted of contine...

The paper describes developments in codifying the place names of the Frisian language area in the Netherlands, using evidence from official maps of the province of Fryslân since the earliest mapping endeavors in the 16th century.

National and international programs dealing with spatial data infrastructures (SDI) made it possible to compile a uniform digital base and a universal toolkit for the integrated description of territories on global to national scales. Atlas information systems (AIS) are considered to be an integrating tool for diverse information resources (modelling, visualisation and analysis), as well as for the elaboration of various scenarios and the possible development of alternatives for such complex systems as those of nature-society-economy. As there is an increased use of digital maps at spatial data infrastructures all aspects related to geographical names are of particular importance in this application of AIS to SDI. It is important to realise a toponymic project, dealing with place-names and their variants depending on the language and time period when a specific place-name was used. The layer of geographical names is considered to be one of the three most important data components of AIS.

The scheme in figure 1 shows how part of the Real World will be represented, via sequences of invisible and digital models, in visible graphical images. Through observation of our environment we form a mental landscape model. When we want to convey this to others we will plan in our minds how to visualize this. In doing so we will probably use some common notions or conventions and represent the relevant data in the form of a map. Nowadays we can be assisted by a computer which we can feed with digital data about the environment we consider relevant. We can structure the relevant files into a database (digital landscape model) from which, in turn, we will select data and transform them into a digital cartographic model, and visualize this through the use of a graphical processing language such as Postscript.

Suite au developpement des technologies numeriques, telles qu'Internet et realite virtuelle, la notion de Cyber-espace' a fait son apparition et est l'objet d'etudes de plus en plus poussees par des chercheurs de diverses disciplines telles que les sciences d'ordinateur, sociologie, geographie et cartographie. Des cartes speciales dites Cybermaps' couvrant Cyber-espace' ont ete produites et utilisees en tant que moyens pour comprendre les aspects divers de ce monde virtuel. Celui-ci se distingue du monde physique reel ou nous vivons de nombreuses manieres et par ce fait represente un grand defi pour les cartographes appeles a donner des clarifications. L'article traite des problemes y relatifs tels que visualisation, analyse et exploration de Cyber-espace'.

With the development of computer technologies such as the Internet and virtual reality, the notion of cyberspace has been emerging and it has been increasingly studied by researchers in various disciplines involving the computer sciences, sociology, geography, and cartography. Cybermaps, as special maps for cyberspace, have been produced and used as a tool for understanding various aspects of cyberspace virtual worlds. Virtual worlds can be distinguished in many ways from the physical world we live in. Because of these distinctions, it is a big challenge for cartographers to offer some clarification. This paper addresses various mapping issues such as visualizing, analysing and exploring cyberspace from different aspects.

We want to better understand geo-information production lines so that we can represent data quality concerns on our maps. And, we must be concerned that not only do we get the right data to the user but that the user gets the data right. We need research to find optimal geo-information production lines, to assess data quality, to link quality to intended uses, and to visualize the results in effective ways. This may involve using fuzzy and crisp symbols, or employing possibility and probability values.

Cartography has had a long tradition of symbolisation, but until Bertin introduced systematic guidelines for symbolisation in the 1960s, the rules followed by cartographers were largely based on convention and experience. In recent years, as computerised mapping systems have become widely available and easily accessed by a large community of users who are cartographically untrained, poorly designed maps have been noticed everywhere, in magazines, in newspapers, even in scientific literature. This is because the current software opens all the possibilities for symbol selection to the user. In order to diminish the potential for misuse, expert systems should be developed, systems that encapsulate the expertise which provides guidance and control during symbol design and so ensure a good product.

This paper describes a new joint Dutch research initiative 'GIS-cartography', combining the research efforts of the cartographers of Utrecht University, Delft University of Technology and the International Institute for Aerospace Survey and Earth Sciences (ITC) in Enschede. The research initiative focuses on the quantification and visualization of data quality, which will be placed in the context of providing automated visual decision support in specific map use strategies. As these map use strategies can only be performed if the relevant cartographic images can be created, studies of both physical access to the data, user interfaces and the provision of sufficient support to allow the user to understand and to derive sensible conclusions from the data are included in the project. Before modules automatically visualizing data quality can be implemented, data documentation, standardization and integration have to be effected, therefore these issues are also covered.