The U.S. Geological Service has produced more than 55,000 maps covering nearly 4 million square miles of the country. The collections are costly to organize and service, so they are mainly found in large academic research libraries. DeLorme, a major map company, has developed software and digitized USGS' 7.5-minute quad maps so that they can be stored on and retrieved from CD-ROM or DVD in 2-D or 3-D perspectives. Each priced disk is at $99.95 and contains all of a state except for seven states that require two disks and eight states that are combined on a disk with one or two other states. Its package price for the entire collection is $649.95-a price of just over $01 per map.
The company also offers TopoUSA, detailed maps of the entire country at a price of $99.95. Regional atlases and gazetteers are available at $74.95 each.
Groups can view the maps using a digital projector. Teachers in a private high school viewed a demonstration of the maps. They were asked to critique the impact of digital projection. The $9,000 digital projector generated less enthusiasm than the "one-cent" maps.
[Contact: Delorme, (800) 569-8313; Web: www.delorme.com]
