Method vs. form – an attempt to classify cartographic presentation methods

The author of the article discusses the subject of terminology in the field of cartographic methodology. The general purpose is to propose an internally consistent system of concepts which allows classification of cartographic presentation methods based on unambiguous criteria. For this purpose, in the article the concept of presentation method and the concept of presentation form were differentiated, the cartographic presentation method was divided into stages, and possible data transformation and visualization aspects during application of a method were specified. Then, review of the previous classifications of cartographic presentation methods was conducted which allows differentiation of two fundamental approaches to classification and comparison of the applied criteria. On this basis, the author’s classification of cartographic presentation methods was suggested in which three qualitative and four quantitative methods were differentiated. It constitutes a compromise between accepting unambiguous criteria and the possibility to differentiate methods fixed in cartographic convention.