Have a question
for the design doctor? Got a squabble you need to settle? Send
in a question by clicking here.
You don’t
need to be a cartographer. You don’t need special
software. And you don’t need to violate copyright laws to
produce an accurate map.
If you need maps
of countries and states, you can find an impressive variety of
styles in most clip-art collections (like the example at left,
from the Art Explosion CD). Once you buy the collection, those
maps are yours to print or modify. But remember: You cannot simply scan and print
someone else’s map.
For one thing, map
details don’t copy well — they’ll probably
look messy and fuzzy. But more importantly, most
professional maps are copyrighted, and copying is stealing. Use
them only as references to guide you in creating your own.
