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Paper map sales are booming

wsj.com

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Re: Paper map sales are booming

#171

Post by jesterpm »

kypro wrote: post #20

Something I find really fun when traveling in the car with kids is to give them a paper map and ask them to plan a route a for us to get to our destination. Then when you're driving ask them to follow along and give the directions. Obviously they can't be too young and they're not going to be perfect, but if you have a child around 7-13 they'll probably find this quite fun. Being able to use a map is one of those ski…

On our last road trip, I gave our 4 year old a printed map with the route highlighted and lettered milestones every hour or so. I was hoping to give a sense of scale (how far away are we, how far we do we travel in a certain time, etc.) that's harder to convey with a digital map. It also worked to practice letters and cardinal directions (we're at K, what's the next letter? the road turns at M, which direction will we be going now?). It worked rather well, but probably because he got a gummy bear at each waypoint.

Re: Paper map sales are booming

#172

Post by fooker »

dudul wrote: post #165
fooker wrote: post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given a map, can you find where you are in the map without GPS? How about planning a route from contour plots? Or maybe figure out which direction you should go without a digital compass?

Yes to all. The map is a projection of your surroundings. You just need to "map" what you see to the map to be able to see where you are and where north is. I guess contour plots is a tad more advanced since it's trying to represent the z axis on a flat sheet of paper. I'm not trying to be obtuse, I genuinely don't see how it is difficult to read a map.

> You just need to "map" what you see to the map to be able to see where you are and where north is.

Well, you have provided a neat definition of map reading. :)

Re: Paper map sales are booming

#173

Post by controlch »

We recently had to define the boundaries of polygons that designate the various sectors of a city. We found that hand drawing them on a paper map was far more convenient than doing the same on a screen. This of course involves the initial design of the polygons and not the subsequent transformation to their respective coordinates, which inevitably had to be done using a map software.

Re: Paper map sales are booming

#174

Post by [deleted] »

dljsjr wrote: post #49

Anybody remember Triptiks from AAA? You'd go to a AAA office or call them on the phone, tell them where you were going, and in return you'd get a printed spiral top-bound pad with your trip broken down in to multiple legs, the roads/routes pre-highlighted, gas stops and prices estimated in, a list of sites for stopping off at, etc. All human curated and human annotated (the roads on your route were literally gone ove…

[deleted]

Re: Paper map sales are booming

#175

Post by wingworks »

ghaff wrote: post #5
joshstrange wrote: post #2

> His customers, he added, aren’t just looking to maps for directions, but as inspiration for future trips or even as art worth hanging. I think that alone accounts for the vast majority of this increase. The article throws that in as a minor detail but I'd bet money it's the only reason. Of course you don't get as many clicks for "More people are buying maps as art". 2 of the 3 examples of maps they give at the end…

Essentially retro-chic. Some may have also discovered some utility in being able to have a big picture view of a destination. However, I wouldn't impute too much utility to the explanation. I'd be pretty surprised if younger generations are suddenly discovering that it can be really useful to have a physical backup in case their phone battery dies.

This, and while no small device can easily replace a large physical map, but map developers aren't helping here either. I find more often then not, in map apps the 2nd you zoom out even a little, you start losing half the details. Even on a larger iPad. Especially the topo map apps, which also tend to forget most devices are HighDPI, so the topo image is also blurry.

I just wish I could set the map level to it's best, then zoom out as far as I want without jumping to a worse level map.

Re: Paper map sales are booming

#176

Post by Finnucane »

capekwasright wrote: post #74
Finnucane wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Down the street from my office is a store that sells maps as art. Old maps, new maps, and transit memorabilia. One of the advantages of a digital map is that it always up to date, but that also means it can never be a historical document, the way an old map can be. For myself I have a pile of bike maps, that I admit I don't use as much as I used to (partly because I have all my regular routes in my head now). The nic…

Ward Maps in Cambridge, MA?

yes.

Re: Paper map sales are booming

#177

Post by HappyJoy »

dljsjr wrote: post #49

Anybody remember Triptiks from AAA? You'd go to a AAA office or call them on the phone, tell them where you were going, and in return you'd get a printed spiral top-bound pad with your trip broken down in to multiple legs, the roads/routes pre-highlighted, gas stops and prices estimated in, a list of sites for stopping off at, etc. All human curated and human annotated (the roads on your route were literally gone ove…

Oh, yes! My Dad used to have these made for our summer road trips. I used to love pouring over the maps before the trip to get hyped up. Then, in the car, following along as we drove. I forgot about that till your comment reminded me. Thanks for the nostalgia!

Re: Paper map sales are booming

#178

Post by dudul »

fooker wrote: post #172
dudul wrote: post #165

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes to all. The map is a projection of your surroundings. You just need to "map" what you see to the map to be able to see where you are and where north is. I guess contour plots is a tad more advanced since it's trying to represent the z axis on a flat sheet of paper. I'm not trying to be obtuse, I genuinely don't see how it is difficult to read a map.

> You just need to "map" what you see to the map to be able to see where you are and where north is. Well, you have provided a neat definition of map reading. :)

I know lol that's why I'm not sure how it is difficult or something to learn really.

I guess your mention of representation of elevation made me realize that you at least need to learn the conventions and the key to a map.

Re: Paper map sales are booming

#179

Post by now__what »

joshstrange wrote: post #2

> His customers, he added, aren’t just looking to maps for directions, but as inspiration for future trips or even as art worth hanging. I think that alone accounts for the vast majority of this increase. The article throws that in as a minor detail but I'd bet money it's the only reason. Of course you don't get as many clicks for "More people are buying maps as art". 2 of the 3 examples of maps they give at the end…

As a hiker I find paper maps absolutely essential and far easier to use than anything digital. Maybe it's because of that familiarity that I print or buy paper maps whenever I'm going on a trip more than a few hours' drive from home. I also rely heavily on printed maps and guidebooks for any extended travel and for trip planning, which are excruciating if you're relying solely on the internet. Can't say I've ever used a map for art.
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