Most 2D-maps are used to represent topographic metrics: distances and areas measured on the map (multiplied by the map scale) give traveling distances and land surfaces. In some cases, this information is irrelevant or even misleading [see an example]. As a cartographer, you may wish to use map metrics [...] Continue Reading…

Counting how many people reside at a given address might just not be enough to understand a territory of mobile individuals. Instead of counting people, I count their “stay-times”. In other words, I sum up the time spent by people in each place.

The map above compares two results:

ΣH, the [...] Continue Reading…

A cartographically challenging fact about the Canton of Valais is that most of its communes cover mountainous areas with no inhabitants. Standard choroplethe maps distort data in these conditions:  communes with only a few inhabitants may appear very large on the map and give a disproportionate importance to data [...] Continue Reading…

This map shows all movements made by Swiss citizens questioned on their traveling practices in the “Mikrozensus zum Verkehrsverhalten 2005″. 33’390 people have been asked. The map includes trips made for the purpose of work, study, leisure and household matters.

Material infrastructures, like roads and railways, are shown too, in [...] Continue Reading…

Searching for an harmonious color scheme starting with a givent color? I recomend Petr Stanícek’s “Color scheme designer”.

Using a simple yet powerfull graphical interface, you can find complementary, triadic analogic and many other methods to any web color. Colors can be directly copied to your CSS.

I recommend combined use [...] Continue Reading…

The written language, made of letters, words and phrases, is how we mostly do internet search. It doesn’t have be that way though. It is very possible, for example, to search a photograph by drawing its approximation. This is shown by ‘retrievr’, the graphic search engine of System One [...] Continue Reading…

And what if consumption has superseded itself with the advent of Internet advertisement?

Since commercials are now possible on global scale, while being contextually aimed at specific audiences, it becomes less and less interesting to mass-produce for crowds subjugated by manufactured desire for standardized objects. Manufacturing myth, like cars, TV’s [...] Continue Reading…