Mapdiva has updated Ortelius (http://www.mapdiva.com/ ), its map illustration software for Mac OS X, to version 1.0.7. With the update, Ortelius User’s Guide is now online
Version 1.0.7 adds dozens of fully editable map templates. Also included are automatic junctions and style transitions and new styles and symbols.
Ortelius is a vector-based drawing program made especially for (though not limited to) map design and presentation. Through its drag-and-drop interface, Ortelius offers a solution for floor plans, landscape plans, scaled drawings, and a variety of custom maps.
Ortelius allows you to draw directly with features such as roads, rivers, coastlines, buildings, symbols, and contours. It’s designed for reports, presentations, books, research papers, invitations, magazines, web sites, brochures, public displays, and new media applications with professional-level results.
Every drawing feature supports map attribute information, such as those imported from geographic information system (GIS) map data, that can be referenced by Ortelius’ intelligent text labeling system. You can create your own styles and symbols or use any of the hundreds that are built-in. You can trace and draw over scanned maps and images, import GIS data from shapefiles, and make maps from included templates.
Ortelius costs $99 for the standard edition, though version 1.0.7 is a free update for registered users. A demo download is available for download.
