For roadmaps, I've ordered the "Travel Pack" from AAA. It's been a while and I don't know if they still provide that service (it is/was a free service for members). The routes are highlighted on the map(s) and they give turn-by-turn directions. I usually skip the turn-by-turn stuff and use the paper maps as a preplanning thing (still carried in the car during travel though). I have a GPS but don't use that much for highway navigation (don't need it), but it's good for finding things like a Joe's Crab Shack restaurant in San Diego, and things of that sort!

For topo maps for hiking, I print them off from the TOPO! program I have on my computer. these are nice because you can print the specific area you are interested in from full-detail scanned USGS maps. However, your typical home printer only does 8-1/2x11 or 8-1/2x14 paper, so the maps cover too small of an area for anything much more than a day hike. You can print multiple maps but that's a pain to manage. And, if your want to take a compas bearing on that big mountain you can see from the trail, there's a good chance it's not on your little 8-1/2x11 map your printed.

The best "for purchase" topo hiking maps I've found (by far!) are put out by a company called Sky Terrain. If you can find them for your area, they are great. But it may be hard to find your area as their selection is limited. Since I live near Denver I use their map of Rocky Mountain National Park and Indian Peaks Wilderness Area all the time. Also their Boulder/Nederland map. I find these unequaled for detail, clarity, waterproofness, etc. REI handles them, or you can get them online.

As much as I like using my GPS, I would NOT recommend leaving the paper maps at home.

they don't have any for california, but for california i think tom harrison maps are the best.

I often set my uncorrected compass on the oriented map to draw the line.
It might not be surveyor accurate but it allows any compass to be used just by setting it on the line.

I find the confusion caused by magnetic, true and grid north can be a real problem for most people I meet.

(I must try to remember that about adding whiskey to virgins)

I also add notes about prominent landmarks or obstacles if they are not on the map, and highlight the best landmarks that are on the map.
I have seen street maps that didn't mark a building that you could see from more than 3/4 of the city, and cliffs that were to small to appear between the contour lines on topos.

I find the problem with generated maps are the same as the Govt maps.
They still won't include all the details I need in the field, or that I want other people to be aware of.
I am not computer savvy enough to know how to add those details to a computer generated map either, except on paper with a pencil.

Good tips on your note system, thanks
(and I have never found a good way to refold maps either)

I find that some of the most helpful maps and charts are produced by organizations that support certain outdoor activities. For hiking, you can get a topo from a lot of places, but, I find the most helpful ones in NH and Maine happen to be produced by the AMC (Appalachain Mountain Club). http://www.outdoors.org/

Their hiking trail maps provide topo info, but, also established trails, campsites, huts, sources of water, trailhead parking, contact info for all the support and emergency services in the area, and a great deal of detail that's relevant if you're a hiker. They are also printed on a waterproof tyvek-like paper. They also have matched guides that walk you over established trails, identify areas requiring certain technical skills/equipment, estimate how difficult different trails are, and give you alternative bail out routes to get below tree line in a hurry if needed.

When I'm on the ocean, nautical charts are available from a lot of places as well, and I carry some of the NOAA charts on the boat, but, I find that I use a waterproof chart of the bay I frequent most often that was produced with additional info, like fishing hot spots, marinas, gas docks, food and supplies in each port, and other things that the gov't produced NOAA charts don't include. I think they are made by Navtech, (it's in the boat, but, that's what I recall) and it was designed as a fisherman's chart.

I'm sure that in other areas of the country, there are more specialized charts, maps, guides produced by outdoor oriented clubs and organizations that will have the "normal" data, plus a bunch more that's related to your particular hobby. It's worth looking around for something like that, IMHO.

Having said all that, I love mapping GPS, but, you really still need the old fashioned methods. I especially find that planning a hike, or trip on the water, is much easier with a hiking map or proper nautical chart in front of me, than with the GPS alone. I seem to get a better perspective looking at the map than I do viewing a small image online.

I've been known to do this on maps I'll need in a hurry.

These days, mostly for budget reasons, I've been using my gutted deLorme atlas a lot. It's got enough that you can navagate by it, and it is generally only 5-10 years out of date. (Around here, the USGS maps have often gone 10-25 years without being photo checked. *shudders*) First thing I do is remove the in-town maps, and the touristy stuff. Keep that first page's map- that gives you the grid for your area and the key. Then stuff it in a freezer bag or two. For under 25 bucks, I get the whole state, rather than half the country- so it isn't accurate enough to call an airstrike and it lacks power lines and the like, for the money I'll take the difference.

I'll often copy sections of a map into my notebook. Either my geology field book, or my everyday pocket notebook. These maps aren't very big, and don't have much detail (at least not in the woods, in cities they can more detailed then a road atlas or internet map) but they familiarize me with the map I'm copying and they provide a useful back up to a full sized map. I'll start out by drawing in the grid lines, and use those as a guide for drawing in major features: roads, rivers, structures and major hill tops and a few contours. I'll draw them with different colors of bic pens I've cut down to 4" lengths, black, red and blue. These maps don't give a perfect representation, but they can help you find your position if you're slightly lost, or give you a panic azimuth if you're really lost. "I don't know where I'm at, but I know I'm north of this road and I can't be more then a few kilometers from it." In a foreign city, they also let you reference a map with out looking like a tourist.

The other thing I'll do if I'm covering a lot of a map or multiple map sheets is fold, cut and glue them to make a sort of book. This is kind of difficult to describe with out pictures. The first step is to cut the boarders off the map exactly so you're left with a rectangle that has nothing but map on it. Then you fold the map into a 'W' shape, with three vertical folds and glue the middle of the 'W' together with a glue stick to make a 'T' shape. Effectively reducing the white space on the back of the map by half and creating three pages. Then, you take an exacto knife and ruler and split the middle page in half horizontally. Finally, you fold the map in half horizontally in line with that cut.

You now have a map that easily folds up into a package 1/8 of the map's size and unfolds like a multi-dimensional book to show either 1/4 or 1/2 of the map sheet. To move around the map you just turn the page. You can even glue multiple map sheets together.

Assuming that we are talking topo maps here, I usually do the Boy Scout trick of drawing parallel lines showing magnetic north, then fold them in my own funny little way and stuff them in a qt sized ziploc bag...