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Overview A map is classically static. One does not interact with the map itself but, rather, with the objects placed upon the map. A legend, either static or dynamic, provides the format of this interaction. Classically polygon-based maps, as well as those that are based on images, tend to have static interaction in the form of an overlay. This is reminiscent of of sticking a pin in a map, or drawing one's route on the map. Wikimaps? There exists little space for commons-based peer-collaboration based on traditional mapping. There is little market for it, given that software such as Google Earth provides more than enough functionality for a casual user and do so for free. A growing geographic literacy may provide a new market of GIS superusers who demand a product that is more interactive and more functional than the basic Google Earth, in which case a more interactive or more feature-rich package such as NASA Worldwind or Wikimapia or some unforeseen project will gain in popularity. Even so, the model itself is more suited toward end users who do not interact with the production of the underlying structure of the map. Collaboration, if it occurs, occurs after such production. Attributes Ease – Both in use and in appreciation. Layer Manipulation – User interaction takes place on the map, and not within it. Normalized – Accuracy of the map is assumed within the context of usage. Yahoo's admonition, to “make a reality check”, exists after the interaction—not during. Overview An atlas is a collection of maps—either of differing geographic regions or differing periods of the same geographic region. It incorporates more emphasis on point-based data and derives its value primarily through comparison between entities. Because of its scholarly emphasis, atlases emphasize authorial verfification for sourcing as well as for professional security in the form of tenure and promotion. Source credibility is not limited to the question of expertness, and of particular appeal for electronic atlases is the ability to combat obscolesence. Attributes Academic – Material designed to be suitable for reference by scholars Linkage – Comparing and contrasting different maps can reveal causal relationships. Analysis – Systems are being explored through the relationships between objects rather than the objects themselves. Wikiatlas? The need for editorial control and its links to the traditional scholarly practices limits the usefulness of the Atlas form in the creation of a community-based peer-collaboration project. The Pliades project is already attempting a hybrid peer-collaboration effort to produce an atlas. Like Nupedia, its managing editors are recognized scholars who mediate the interaction of less-qualified contributors. Overview Gazetteers are point-based, geographically- influenced catalogs of information. Geography is important, but not key. Gazetteers are focused upon features in time and space. Gazetteers are, fundamentally, indexes of named places and the encyclopedic nature of Wikipedia's placename entries resemble gazetteering more than any other method of storing geographic information. Accurate representation of a geographical area is, especially historically, a problematic goal of GIS solutions. In this case, the gazetteer's weak- geographic orientation is its greatest strength. The extent and sometimes even location of many historic entities is questionable, and their placement on a map can express false confidence. The same case exists with modern political, cultural and linguistic entities, whose actual reach and importance can be exaggerated or mitigated by their representation on a traditional map using points or polygons. “By contrast with the map-based visualizations that form the centerpiece of most geographical information systems, gazetteers are simply databases of named features—places, areas and groups. As such, they are well-equipped to incorporate notes, certainty ratings, alternative names in multiple languages, feature types, relationships among places, and citations to sources in ways that are reasonably familiar to historians.” (Mostern, Historical Gazetteers) Attributes Catalog of Names – With at least one feature type associated with each place. Dynamic Preference – Multiple points of view/interaction Wikiteer? The Gazetteer is at once the most and least popular geographic implementation under peer-collaboration models. Wikipedia's own location entries provide gazetteer-like information. Yet, there is no project in place to locate and reference such entries outside the standardized, textual Wikipedia. Examples Wikipedia http://www.wikipedia.org Wikipedia's thousands of geographic entries disambiguate toponyms, locate and express geographic information in Gazetteer style. FreeCiv http://www.freeciv.org/ The open-source project for the creation of a Civilization-like strategy game. Locations, actors and features are handled in a unit-based style similar to Gazetteers. This poster elaborates upon the current state of digital geography to draw lessons for an implementation of a Wikipedia-like spatial information repository. The sporadic dialog on Wikimedia highlights three possible mediums—atlas, gazetteer and map. The differences between these mediums are discussed herein, highlighting the current state of digital standards for maps, atlases and gazetteers from academic organizations such as the Alexandria Digital Library and the Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative. Current projects, such as the Vision of Britain and the Valley of the Shadow, demonstrate the stylistic, epistemological and technological options available for GIS representation. Three possible solutions exist, each based on one of these three methods, and are analyzed with a view toward usefulness in commons-based peer collaboration, specifically the low cost (both to access and modify) necessary for widespread adoption. While all distinctions between abstract geographic representations are arbitrary, dealing with digital geography blurs categories even further. Animation, layering and GIS functionality (even the most rudimentary) affords a casual user of Google Earth far more options than they would find with a classical desktop globe. Keeping this in mind, there is a difference both in kind and in design between the Gazetteer, the Atlas and the Map that still provides value to categorization. Examples The Ancient World Mapping Center's Pleiades Project http://www.unc.edu/awmc/pleiades.html An expert-mediated, open-content project to give “on-line access to all information about Greek and Roman geography assembled by the Classical Atlas Project” The Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative http://www.ecai.org/ A scholarly organization developing the necessary software and methodology for dynamic mapping utilizing the data clearinghouse model International Dunhuang Project http://idp.bl.uk/ An atlas of Silk Road societies “to make information and images of more than 100,000 manuscripts, paintings, textiles and artefacts... available on the Internet.” TimeMap http://timemap.net/ A Java-based mapping tool designed to provide academic users with a means of creating dynamic maps that change over time. Vision of Britain http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/ The user-friendly instantiation of the Great Britain Historical GIS Project. Provides users with the ability to search and browse a wealth of historical data. Examples Wikimapia http://wikimapia.org/ Allows collaborative creation and definition of areas of note on a static map drawn from Google Earth. NASA World Wind http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/ An open-source, 3D series of globes—Earth, the moon, Mars, among others—along with a series of animated and static overlays for the presentation of geographic information. Valley of the Shadow Project http://valley.vcdh.virginia.edu/ An animated map of the Eastern Theatre of the American Civil War focused on the actions of two regiments—one Union, one Confederate. The Strategy Game as Digital Humanities Document The unit-based nature of strategy games implies a gazetteer-style of geographic information processing. While some modern strategy games and Civilization-style empire games have transitioned to polygon based gameplay, the hex-based geographic display also promotes gazetteer style information storage suitable for commons-based peer- collaboration. The strategy game's differing views, wherein the strategic map view is simply one of many interface options, reflects the gazetteer's fundamental preferencing of the object over its location while acknowledging the location as important. The creation of an image-oriented, geographic system capable of being accessed on a Wikipedia scale requires a scalable, easily manipulated solution. An interpreted, vector-graphics MediaWiki equivalent would provide the most users with the most flexibility. Elijah Meeks University of California, Merced World Cultures and History Program -The Public Humanities [email protected] wikipedia:elijahmeeks
