Recently, due to Web 2.0 and neocartography, heat maps have become a popular map type for quick reading. Heat maps are graphical representations of geographic data density in the form of raster maps, elaborated by applying kernel density estimation with a given radius on point- or linear-input data. The aim of this study was to compare the usability of heat maps with different levels of generalization (defined by radii of 10, 20, 30, and 40 pixels) for basic map user tasks. A user study with 412 participants (16–20 years old, high school students) was carried out in order to compare heat maps that showed the same input data. The study was conducted in schools during geography or IT lessons. Objective (the correctness of the answer, response times) and subjective (response time self-assessment, task difficulty, preferences) metrics were measured. The results show that the smaller radius resulted in the higher correctness of the answers. A larger radius did not result in faster response times. The participants perceived the more generalized maps as easier to use, although this result did not match the performance metrics. Overall, we believe that heat maps, in given circumstances and appropriate design settings, can be considered an efficient method for spatial data presentation.

This paper aims to present and discuss the method of geocoding historical place names from historic maps that cannot be georeferenced in the GIS environment. This concerns especially maps drawn in the early modern period, i.e., before the common use of precise topographic surveys. Such maps are valuable sources of place names and geocoding them is an asset to historical and geographical analyses. Geocoding is a process of matching spatial data (such as place names) with reference datasets (databases, gazetteers) and therefore giving them geographic coordinates. Such referencing can be done using multiple tools (online, desktop), reference datasets (modern, historical) and methods (manual, semi-automatic, automatic), but no suitable approach to handling inaccurate historic maps has yet been proposed. In this paper, selected geocoding strategies were described, as well as the author’s method of matching place names from inaccurate cartographic sources. The study was based on Charles Perthées maps of Polish palatinates (1:225,000, 1783–1804)—maps that are not mathematically precise enough to be georeferenced. The proposed semi-automatic and curated approach results in 85% accuracy. It reflects the manual workflow of historical geographers who identify place names with their modern counterparts by analysing their location and proper name.

The authors of the review aim to understand and assess cartographic Heat Maps’ (HM) designs, tools, and applications. The paper consists of two parts. First describes HM in the context of neocartography and map design by tackling such issues as definition, input data, methods of density determination and generalization, colour schemes, legend construction, and base maps. The second part assesses the range of 17 tools used for creating HM. Tools are divided into non-GIS tools (visualization tools and programming libraries) and GIS applications (desktop and webGIS). GIS desktop software has been selected due to its popularity and wide application. Paper presents an expert assessment of this software with the use of a research questionnaire. The analysis made it possible to develop a division of tools based on their embedding in computer programs and applications and taking into account the types of visualization. It also made it possible to indicate tools that can be used by both professional GIS users (e.g. analysts, cartographers) and the general public, including teachers using HM to visualize geo data for geography lessons. The limitation of the review was the analysis from the expert’s point of view. It would be desirable to include novices perspectives in future studies due to the wide demand for visualization.

The Topographic Chart of the Kingdom of Poland (pol. Topograficzna Karta Królestwa Polskiego, commonly referred to as ‘the Quartermaster’s Map’, hereinafter: TKKP) is the first Polish modern topographic map of Poland (1:126,000, 1843). Cartographic historians acclaim its conception by the General Quartermaster of the Polish Army, noting its editorial principles and technical execution as exemplars of the early 19th-century cartographic standards. Today, it stands as a national heritage relic, furnishing invaluable insights into the former Polish Kingdom’s topography. Although extensively utilised in geographical and historical inquiries, the TKKP has yet to undergo a comprehensive geomatic investigation and publication as spatial data services. Primarily, this delay stems from the challenges of mosaicking and georeferencing its 60 constituent sheets, owing to the uncertain mathematical framework and irregular sheet cuts. In 2023, the authors embarked on rectifying this by creating a unified TKKP mosaic and georeferencing the map to contemporary reference data benchmarks. This endeavour involved scrutinising the map’s mathematical accuracy and verifying prior findings. The resultant product is accessible via the ‘Maps with the Past’ platform, developed by the Institute of History of the Polish Academy of Sciences The dissemination of raster data services adhering to OGC standards such as WMTS (Web Map Tile Service), ECW (Enhanced Compression Wavelet), and COG (Cloud Optimized GeoTIFF) facilitates the swift and seamless integration of the generated data into web and GIS tools. The digital edition of the TKKP emerges as a pivotal resource for investigations spanning natural and anthropogenic environmental transformations, sustainable development, and cultural heritage studies.

The following article discusses current trends in digital methods used in historical cartographic source editing. Maps are often used not only by scholars interested in spatial history, but also by the general public. Due to increasing popularity of ‘maps online’, it is crucial to discuss, evaluate and classify current solutions and applications used in cartographic source editing. In the article the ‘edition’ is understood as the ‘critical representation of a historical documents’, and many types of map editions are considered. The level of map transformation: from raw image, through georeferenced map to spatial database constitutes the main axis of the division between various types of editions. On the very basic level (maps as images: digital libraries and collections), we only have a raster representation of a historic map, often supplemented by bibliographic metadata and the possibility to download it. The second level is geoportals with georeferenced maps, i.e. with spatial adjustment to modern geographic coordinates. The third, most complex level, includes elaboration of the spatial database with most important features (e.g. settlements, roads, land cover, etc.), which serves as the geographic index. The higher the map transformation level, the more useful the edition becomes. Nevertheless, more complex methods in map processing also should include more documentation about this process which is not always present within discussed projects. The main result of the article, apart from classifying existing applications and proposing their general types is to identify functionality and components of the so-called model edition of a historic map.