Articles about map export formats, tools and OpenStreetMap data use cases.
CSV (RFC 4180) is the simplest tabular text format: lat/lon columns or WKT geometry, readable in Excel/pandas/R/QGIS; the open-data standard for POIs and addresses.
COG — the cloud-native GeoTIFF evolution: 512px internal tiles, overview pyramids, HTTP range requests, OGC standard since July 2023, OSM export via gdal_translate -of COG.
COLLADA is a Khronos XML format for 3D scene exchange: ISO/PAS 17506:2012, supports meshes/animation/physics, used by Google Earth, now being replaced by glTF.
CityJSON is a TU Delft JSON encoding of CityGML: 6-10× smaller than XML, v2.0 OGC Community Standard 2024, used by Dutch 3DBAG, Helsinki, Vienna.
CityGML is an OGC standard based on GML 3.2.1 for 3D city models: 5 detail levels (LOD0-LOD4), ADE extensions; used by Berlin, Helsinki, Munich, NYC.
Deep guide to CDR: CorelDRAW's proprietary format since 1989, RIFF and ZIP structures, and how OSM2CDR delivers a ready .cdr that opens with a double click.
Alembic from Lucasfilm and Sony 2010 (ASWF): Ogawa backend, baked-mesh cache for Maya/Houdini/RenderMan, OSM city export.
Deep guide to AI: native Adobe Illustrator format since 1987, transition to PDF wrapper in 2000, how to export an OpenStreetMap map for designers and print shops.
3D Tiles from Cesium GS 2015, OGC 1.1 (2023) glTF-native: tileset.json, LOD, BIM + drones + OSM building streaming.
3MF is a Microsoft and 3MF Consortium ZIP-XML format for 3D printing: colors, materials, supports, beam lattices; STL alternative supported by Cura, Bambu, PrusaSlicer.
Deep dive into Autodesk 3DS: 1990 DOS pipeline history, chunked binary spec, 65k vertex limits, OSM building export.
Practical DXF vs DWG comparison: format history since 1982, file size, layers, compatibility, conversion, decision matrix. Selection table for architects, engineers and GIS professionals.