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I am a GIS major. That is part of the reason I have learned how to read a map. Another part is that I have been looking at maps since I was 8 years old.
Hah! I've been looking at maps since I was 4-5 years old.
I've long said that if you were someone who liked to look at maps or draw fake maps when you were a kid (both of which were things I did), then geography or a closely related subject is a good field of study for you. Furthermore, though most people don't have a good concept of what geography as a field/discipline involves, it is a subject that is involved in many, many jobs. When you come right down to it, geography can be defined as the spatial relationship between places. Maps are merely graphical depictions of those relationships.
On a related note, there was a "geography thread" or something like that fairly recently (or possibly an older thread with many responses) in one of the forums. If you ask me, MOST of the city-data forums, or at least the ones about specific places, are geography forums.
Hah! I've been looking at maps since I was 4-5 years old.
I've long said that if you were someone who liked to look at maps or draw fake maps when you were a kid (both of which were things I did), then geography or a closely related subject is a good field of study for you. Furthermore, though most people don't have a good concept of what geography as a field/discipline involves, it is a subject that is involved in many, many jobs. When you come right down to it, geography can be defined as the spatial relationship between places. Maps are merely graphical depictions of those relationships.
On a related note, there was a "geography thread" or something like that fairly recently (or possibly an older thread with many responses) in one of the forums. If you ask me, MOST of the city-data forums, or at least the ones about specific places, are geography forums.
My 6th birthday present was a Fisher-Price map of the USA(the one where you turn a dial). I do like maps. Part of why I choose GIS as a major. I do like the specific geography thread.
i've always loved maps and could entertain myself for hours with a big old atlas book
i also love the triptik service provided by AAA and it can be fun sitting down with one of their people to map something out
however, I wouldn't exactly take the word of a AAA employee as a serious poll - you have to keep in mind a lot of the people that come in and use the service are people who are completely unfamiliar with an area or unfamiliar with maps in general and thus needing the extra help
he doesn't see the people who just buy a map or print a bunch of maps off the computer and figure it out on their own
with that said, I do feel it's a dying skill though - you no longer see glove boxes stuffed with maps, maps for sale everywhere, etc
I have been reading maps and majored in geography. GIS is neat, but its a shame I don't have the best computer skills. It would be neat to learn more about GIS.
Since everyone here is a mapophile, what do you think of those DeLorme state atlases?
Jlawrence01, I'm not familiar with the Delorme state atlas'. Tell me more! I deliver to the same 70-some stores and I know how to get to 'em all (or have printed directions from dispatch for the few I rarely visit) I'm a fan of those laminated Rand McNally folding state & city maps, otherwise.
DeLorme has a series of state atlases (generally one per state). Since you have an entire book per state, the details are far more detailed than you will find in the Rand McNally mapbook. They have a lot of road maps as well as topographical information. They are really great when you are heading to remote locations like the Mojave Desert and you want really clear maps.
Many libraries have a complete set and you can take the one or two state maps that you need.
See the link for more information.
As for AAA, I will admit that I have been a member for 28 years. However, I do it mostly for the emergency road service. The travel agency portion is so 60s. If you want to go to Las Vegas, Disney or the Caribbean, they are pretty a decent. If you really want to do some serious travel. they are generally pretty clueless from my experience. Most of them do not get out on the internet to see what is out there.
By the way, while the AAA Tour Books are pretty decent (and free to members), I strongly recommend that you call places in advance to verify their hours. So much of the information is incomplete and out of date.
I also have a 1908 edition of The Motor Routes Of Britain, an Edwardian route guide.
Whilst in Houston I was shown some 17th century road maps of England in an Antiquarian shop, together with maps of Texas from the 1830s!
Back to the present day, relying on a GPS system alone is just asking for trouble.
I love maps too. I especially like looking at political maps over a period of time.
I always have a road atlas at home. Sometimes I just look through it for fun. I like knowing where things are, and its interesting to see how the counties are mapped out in various states (as in older Eastern states vs. the wide-open West).
I can read a map but I have no innate sense of direction. Lord help me if the sun is high in the sky or its night, and I have no visual landmarks to mark a direction (eg, in a city near me, the mountains are East).
Momof2DFW; True story- I stopped to talk to my fleet manager when a load brought me past my company's headquarters one June day. I sat down next to my VERY busy Fleet Manager as she answered call after call. During one call, I looked over at the young man working in the cubicle next to her. I heard him talking about an email he'd just recieved from a driver. The driver was hauling a load from Richmond, VA to Denver, CO. He pulled out his folding Rand McNally Map of the United States and I heard him say: "I-70 is a restricted route, so I'd better route him across I-80" Our company will not route drivers west of Denver on I-70 in the WINTER. But this was July and he was not hauling a HAZMAT load...
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