[GRASS-user] help needed with creation of (printable) maps

[WolfgangZ]

Hi all,

this is slightly off topic, but at least Grass should be used to create 
the base data for maps.

We want to create a map of a part of a mountain. It will consist of 
several layers (DOP, height lines, polygon lines, coordinate grid, ...). 
I've never done something like this and I hope that I can get some 
reccomendations regarding the work flow and suitable software to use.

One big problem is that one of my friends prefers to use Adobe 
Illustrator to create one of these layers, but as far as I know 
Illustrator can't handle anything else as paper units and therefore all 
georeferenciation is lost. The advantage of Illustrator would be that it 
is easy to colorize (or fill) areas and create nice looking plots.

An other task is to create (a kind of) atlas where parts of the big map 
fits on single A4 sheets. Are there any possibilities to cut out parts 
of a big map and automatically create a grid (with numbers at the border)?

I had a short look at gmt, but I find it quite cryptic to use.
Any suggestions are welcome.

Regards
Wolfgang