In Cartography, there is no substitute for years of education, independant study and experience. I do not see it becoming a "mouse click away" in the forseeable future.

Want an example of "current events" where cartometry was an insufficient qualifier for data reliablity? Remember the three Chinese reporters killed in the recent bombing of Belgrade? Lousy accuracy? Nope. They hit the exact building they wanted to hit ... accuracy in itself does not make a reliable map (or target).

The human component in cartography (current buzz word is "GIS") will not be replaced anytime soon. When you want to evaluate a data set, not only do you have to rate the cartometric accuracy, you also have to rate the attribute accuracy otherwise known as "revision date." In digital form, that is quite elusive. In fact, it lends a "Polyanna" air to the concept of "metadata."

Clifford J. Mugnier (cjmce@uno.edu)
The Topographic Engineering Laboratory
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
UNIVERSITY OF NEW ORLEANS
New Orleans, Louisiana 70148

Sat, 19 Jun 1999 12:21:16 -0500