In this paper we aim at symbol sharing. First

we analyze two methods of symbol sharing.Second

we investigate the construction principals of map symbols for the difference issues of symbol design patterns.The PostScript imaging model will be introduced and an XML-based symbol representation mode is being proposed as well. Third

due to the discrepancy of symbol usage environment and symbolic interface

a web services based distributed sharing method for map symbol data and functions is presented. Finally

a prototype system for symbol sharing is being built to validate the feasibility of map symbol service sharing.