Content rules of topographic maps

Content of a topographic map should be full, authentic, up-to-day, accurate and should provide solving problems on behalf of most users.

The completeness of a topographic map content means that it should display all typical features and elements and objects true to type of locality. Significant thing for the completeness of a topographic map of various scales is coordinated display of locality peculiarities on it and also signed names of the objects. Large-scaled topographic maps should maintain all elements, objects and signs, that small-scaled map have.

Authenticity (accurate data, depicted on the map in certain period of time) and up-to-dateness (accordance to the present state of the depicted objects) of the map means that map content should correspond with the locality at the moment of its use.

Requirement in map accurateness (degree of accordance between object's location on the map and its location in reality) is that objects depicted on the map should maintain accurateness of location, geometric similarity, size in accordance with map scale and its function.

The efficiency of handing over map content, its reading and visual estimate of local information depends on used system of graphic means - conventional signs. Main demand, maid to conventional signs are: to hand over maximum information of depicted in the map objects using minimum number of conventional signs, to achieve high degree of accurateness, detail, perceptivity and retention of cartographic depiction; to provide automatic reading, parse and reproduction of cartographic depiction. Very important means of improving the quality of cartographic depiction, conveying qualitative and quantitative characteristics of objects is color.

Color typography of maps should be carried out in accordance with user's demand and psychology laws of color perception on the map, formed color spectrum of cartographic depiction. Colors, used on the map should facilitate to maximum division of various elements in its content. Color spectrum of the map should maintain the greatest color contrast with the up-to-date information, statistic and other data.