Paper vs. Electronic Charts - what's really the difference?

[K_V_B]

Paper charts are of course now also "electronic", as they are made from a digital source. If you buy digital raster charts these are not paper charts run through a scanner. It's the other way round. Paper charts are digital charts printed on paper...

I remember a visit to the geographic office in Belgium when I was a student. The guide told us then (this was 1990) that what they produce there is a database. The database is used to produce, amongst other things, paper maps. Maps are produced on a computer, but producing maps does still involve a human being, to decide what to show, and what not to show at each scale.
I remember my professor telling us that if you'd manage to design a computer algorithm that can do what a skilled cartographer does you'd retire young and very rich...
The main difference between "vector" and "raster" maps is the human element. They are actually both digital, both the product of a entirely digital workflow. And both end up as bitmaps on a screen... But in case of a "raster" map a skilled cartographer has made the decisions what to show at what scales.
And that is probably also why conventional, raster maps are considered more aesthetically appealing. They are more consisten, and convey the needed information well.
I use on my iPad the Imray charting application. Imray raster charts are beautiful, and if apple ever makes a table twice the size of an iPad I'll be in heaven. So for me it's digital "paper" on an iPad at the moment, combined with whatever I find on board the boat I rented.

[Amnesia II]

Electronic charts. Yes, we all use them daily. However I always make sure I have paper charts below on standby for emergencies. " Belt & bracers" is the way to go!

Bellingtons or Bellingham photocopies are only 6 bucks each.

[cal40john]

In neither of the programs I use do the details shown on raster charts change. The programs are good at selecting different charts for me. The detail level on different charts with different scales differ though.

Are new raster charts of previously uncharted areas being created? Everything I've read says raster charts are scans of paper charts. They are now being updated electronically by CAD though.

NOAA 200th

Originally Posted by K_V_B

Paper charts are of course now also "electronic", as they are made from a digital source. If you buy digital raster charts these are not paper charts run through a scanner. It's the other way round. Paper charts are digital charts printed on paper...

I remember a visit to the geographic office in Belgium when I was a student. The guide told us then (this was 1990) that what they produce there is a database. The database is used to produce, amongst other things, paper maps. Maps are produced on a computer, but producing maps does still involve a human being, to decide what to show, and what not to show at each scale.
I remember my professor telling us that if you'd manage to design a computer algorithm that can do what a skilled cartographer does you'd retire young and very rich...
The main difference between "vector" and "raster" maps is the human element. They are actually both digital, both the product of a entirely digital workflow. And both end up as bitmaps on a screen... But in case of a "raster" map a skilled cartographer has made the decisions what to show at what scales.
And that is probably also why conventional, raster maps are considered more aesthetically appealing. They are more consisten, and convey the needed information well.
I use on my iPad the Imray charting application. Imray raster charts are beautiful, and if apple ever makes a table twice the size of an iPad I'll be in heaven. So for me it's digital "paper" on an iPad at the moment, combined with whatever I find on board the boat I rented.

[K_V_B]

Originally Posted by cal40john

In neither of the programs I use do the details shown on raster charts change. The programs are good at selecting different charts for me. The detail level on different charts with different scales differ though.

The detail level shown in each scale is decided by the cartographer who made the chart. Exactly my point...

Everything I've read says raster charts are scans of paper charts. They are now being updated electronically by CAD though.

Paper maps are produced using a digital workflow. They have been for a while. There is no reason to print on paper first and then scan, as digital raster charts are just another digital format that your workflow can produce.
Compare it with PDF. To create a PDF file you don't print first and then put the result through a scanner, you produce the PDF directly from your word processor.