While the overall design goals are similar in both GIS and graphic design, they aren’t always exactly the same. One of the big differences comes in the amount of detail shown. In graphic design, a designer usually tries to get rid of any un-needed detail, while GIS people often to have the opposite impulses.This can be summed by a comment made by noted information architect Richard Saul Wurman. While touring the ESRI headquarters, he noticed the collection of maps on the walls, produced by GIS people all around the world. He advised GIS professionals to put less ‘stuff’ (a much stronger word was used) on their maps.
It’s true that many GIS people are inclined to add as much detail as possible to their maps. Speaking personally, skimping on the detail shown on a map can be a little difficult for me. It always feels like I’m cheating the viewer out of potentially very important information.
Growing up, my inspirations were the Rand McNally USA atlas and the Thomas Guides. Especially the Thomas Guides. These detailed maps covered the larger urban areas of the west coast, and the amount of detail NEVER failed to fascinate me. Street patterns, parks, schools and even the neighborhood’s shopping centers were all laid out before you. Regional malls even showed the building outlines and the names of many of the anchor stores. (This was in the days before Google Earth started giving us detailed looks at practically any urban area on earth.)
On some level, I wonder if I’m still channeling these maps today. Large amounts of detail on a map can be a double-edged sword. While more detail might cause some features to blend in too much, or even get lost, it can also be useful. You don’t always know how a map will be used, or what kind of connections or conclusions might be drawn from information that some might consider extraneous. Also, extra features can sometimes extend the usefulness of a map beyond its original intent.
Studying graphic design has given me a new take on the issue; it’s easier for me to identify instances of TMI (too much information.) Somewhere deep down though, I still have a vague feeling that I’m cheating a future user out of information when I decide not to show something on a map….
Mike Strong 