I also use ArcMap a work. However, the license for it is prohibitive. IIRC, the minimum license for their software is $5000/yr, not including upgrades. But I have not looked at their license in over five years. It may be quite different now.

However, I have been working on a project using QGIS and GRASS to geocode my fantasy world of Onaviu. The amount of work is phenomenal. Just for a small island about the size of Bald Head Island in North Carolina, took me several months just to geocode all the data which included; coastline (0.5 meter resolution), vegetation types, biomes, hydrology including coastal marshes, wadis, etc., 0.5 meter resolution DEM, and more.

Of course, to geocode an entire world at that resolution would take 1000s of lifetimes. However, geocoding the world on a resolution of 5000 meters with coastline, biomes, vegetation, climates, and landform assemblages took me about two years.

The major problem is having to geocode everything. Else, it will never align correctly when opened. Especially once you have defined a projection system for the project. I find Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro, GIMP, and Inkscape easier to use since you do not have to worry about geocoding everything.

rmfr