A Method for Place Name Display Considering User Locating Habits in Map Sites

Abstract. The traditional researches for cartographic lettering and display focus on conflict among labels and overlap between labels and features. But these two issues are not significant in web maps. It is worthwhile to concern about how to improve labels' readability considering user locating habits for enhancing user experience. This paper has established a new method for place name display called "the gravitational field". This method is appropriate for the display of dotted place names from the national level (approximately 1:20 million) to city level (approximately 1:250 thousand) in web maps. We have conducted a usability test which used all nationwide provincial capitals, autonomous regions, municipalities, prefecture-level cities, municipal districts, countries and part of the townships dotted names. The results show that this rule improves web map’s legibility, and can significantly enhance the user experience.