For the technically and geographically inclined… Joe Edmon at Genealogy Blog vented his frustration with maps saved in what I’m assuming is the MrSid image format.
When I first encountered MrSid files at the Library of Congress I was perplexed, until I started using the MrSID Standalone Viewer. I now download the .sid file open it with this application, zoom into the level I like and then choose export from the file menu. Whola and editable .tif file.
I agree with Joe that life would be much easier with access to .jpg images of the maps, but .sid files compress at a much higher quality/compression ratio than any other format I’m aware of.
I can’t find this the viewer on the LizardTech’s website, but a quick search on google points you to Steve Jackson’s .Mac site (look under Genealogy files).
Disclaimer: I run the MrSid viewer under Classic on Mac OS X. Mileage with windows may vary.
Now if I could just figure out how to convert 32 bit tif files from seamless.usgs.gov. 😉
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