Mapping Cyberspace: Visualizing,Analysing and Exploring Virtual Worlds

Abstract

With the development of computer technologies such as the Internet and reality, the notion of cyberspace has been emerging and it has been increasingly studied by researchers in various disciplines involving the computer sciences, sociology, geography, and cartography. Cybermaps, as special maps for cyberspace, have been produced and used as a tool for understanding various aspects of cyberspace virtual worlds. Virtual worlds can be distinguished in many ways from the physical world we live in. Because of these distinctions, it is a big challenge for cartographers to offer some clarification. This paper addressed various mapping issues such as visualizing, analysing and exploring cyberspace from different aspects.