Towards a complementary concept of a new national atlas of Poland

Artykuł zawiera opis działań podejmowanych w ostatnich dwóch latach, związanych z próbą wydania nowego atlasu narodowego Polski, w tym proponowane założenia wydawnicze. Przedstawiono historię prac organizacyjnych oraz koncepcję, starającą się dla osiągnięcia różnych celów (naukowych, edukacyjnych, prestiżowych itd.) łączyć różne formy wydawnicze atlasu, którą z tego powodu nazwano komplementarną. Wydaje się być ona kompromisem między stanem wiedzy, intencjami i pomysłami środowisk naukowych, a możliwościami technicznymi oraz organizacyjno-finansowymi.After the Atlas of Republic of Poland (Atlas Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) appeared in 1997, several initiatives aiming to build on its scientific success took place. In 2001, the Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization of Polish Academy of Sciences published the Computer Atlas of Poland (Komputerowy Atlas Polski), and later, in 2002-2003 three detailed versions of a new national atlas were prepared for publication, but never finalized. In autumn of 2011, there appeared an idea of publishing a new national atlas for the centennial of Poland's regaining its independence, 1918-2018 (P. Sleszyiiski, 2011). Considering all previous experience and conditioning, the idea of the atlas has to be approached more pragmatically in the next few years, from the point of view of science, financing and organization. Various publication forms proposed by different circles should not compete with one another. The strongest advantages of each form should be used preserving their scientific value. From the point of view of complexity, generalization, knowledge synthesis and the level of content the best form is the traditional "paper" atlas, comprising a well-considered set of maps. However, from the point of view of quantity and variety of contained information as well as the ways and forms of its syste-matization and presentation - the best possibilities are provided by a digital version (DVD, CD-ROM) and a website (thematic website, geoportal). Scientific, educational, prestige-related, practical and other goals should be realized with the help of most adequate means. This concept may be labeled as complementary. It can be realized in terms of science (ensuring a wide take on thematic problems in a variety of ways), education (transfer of scientific knowledge and cartographic methods of varying complexity to different user groups), organization (involving various institutions with their unique experience), usability (reaching a variety of user groups), prestige and financing-marketing. The most important, scientific objective can best be reached with a basic, exemplary and "prestigious" cartographic elaboration in a traditional printed book-plate form. Next should be a multimedia atlas in "Scandinavian" convention, broadening some notions otherwise impossible to be presented in the "paper" form, especially 3D imaging (e.g. DTM). It would attain mainly educational goals and provide access to often complex scientific knowledge to a lay user. Simultaneously, a cartographical website could be created (probably as yet another national geoportal) containing updated and more detailed problems, especially socio-economic in character, allowing for the creation of one's own maps on the basis of socio-economic data and ensuring a high interactivity. The website could satisfy the need for an up-to-date, comprehensive and professional knowledge about the area of the country. The presented concept aims at a compromise between the knowledge, intentions and ideas of the scientific circles on the one hand and technical and organizational-financial possibilities on the other