Show HN: Cartopolis – OpenStreetMap rendered like it's 1999

Category: web-framework

Tags: openstreetmap, rendering, nostalgia, static-site, gif-export

Score: 7.0/10 (Innovation: 8, Technical: 8, Documentation: 9, Utility: 5)

Cartopolis renders OpenStreetMap data in the visual style of late-1990s web maps, using a constraint-first pipeline that enforces integer pixel rounding, web-safe colors, and aggressive geometry simplification. It employs a novel static architecture with binary vector packs and HTTP Range requests, and can export GIF89a images, making it an interesting blend of nostalgia, cartography, and efficient engineering.

Target audience: frontend developers, cartography enthusiasts, map rendering engineers, retro design fans

Repository: https://seriot.ch/drawing/cartopolis/

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