Making a map is a surprisingly complex process, and full-blown cartography software (such as ArcMap) has a steep learning curve. Here are a few ideas on how to make a simple map:
1. Take a plain outline map and add features using a paint program such as mspaint (which comes free with Windows) or the free website "Sumopaint" (http://www.sumopaint.com). Below you can see a plain map, and how it was colored and labeled using MSPaint.
 |
| Blank outline map from P & P World Map |
|
|
|
Same map colored and labeled in MSPaint (free with windows) saved as PNG |
 |
| PNG format does a better job preserving straight lines. Compare to the jpg image above, which is fuzzy. |
