As a GIS developer, my design skills are rather limited. Are there any links, books or resources, that you would suggest to make my online maps more pleasing and beautiful?
[GIS] What resources can you suggest for making beautiful online Maps or Mapping applications
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There are a lot of great bad examples at http://cartastrophe.wordpress.com/. For example this map of Europe (part of a world map that uses colors excessively and without obvious purpose):
Besides the coloring, the labeling on this map is a mess.
In Tomtom data for example, you have an attribute called frc that can be used to classify roads. The following setup will create a GoogleMaps-style roadmap with different styles for different zoom levels.
I've worked out a solution for Google-like labeling too, this time based on OSM data: http://underdark.wordpress.com/2011/09/13/guide-to-advanced-labeling-for-osm-roads/
More related posts:
Best Answer
The CartoTalk forum is a good resource for map design and critique. Gretchen Peterson has written a good map design fundamentals book, very accessible and to the point : http://www.gretchenpeterson.com/
For specifics about online mapping applications, there's geography 2.0, already mentionned, but you can learn by example (many lists are available on the web) and read some Web Graphic Design articles : http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/04/06/maps-in-modern-web-design/
A dedicated blog : http://giswebmaps.blogspot.com/