Google Maps API

Last Updated: 2015-05-21

This is deprecated, because of the release of google maps api version 3, but i leave it here for reference reasons.

I want to share some insights about the google maps api which i gained over the last few days. I guess, i just write a small how-to to get your own google maps featured directions.
First of all, to use all the magic of google maps, you have to get a google maps api key by signing up and entering the top level domain of your homepage on which you want to show the map. There is quite a good documentation of the api and some nice examples but in my case, knowing next to nothing about java script, these didn’t quite help me doing what i wanted to do. So i surfed around the world wide web and got the final code together with snippets from here and there. I hope, someone will find this short explanation aka how to useful.
Step one: insert this into the head section of your html-file:

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://maps.google.com/maps?file=api%20&v=2&key=XXX"></script>

XXX being your developer key

<div id="gmap-name" style="width: 400px; height: 400px; float: left;">
<noscript><b>JavaScript must be enabled in order for you to use Google Maps.</b>
      However, it seems JavaScript is either disabled or not supported by your browser.
      To view Google Maps, enable JavaScript by changing your browser options, and then
      try again.
</noscript></div>

you should always have some explanation in the noscript area – even better would be a static version, i.e. a jpg, of the map.

<!-- google maps api -->
<script type="text/javascript">// <![CDATA[
    // Check to see if this browser can run the Google API
    if (GBrowserIsCompatible()) {
      var gmarkers = [];
      var htmls = [];
      var to_htmls = [];
      var from_htmls = [];
      var i=0;
      // A function to create the marker and set up the event window
      function createMarker(point,name,html) {
        var marker = new GMarker(point);
        // The info window version with the "to here" form open
        to_htmls[i] = html + '<br>Route berechnen: <b>Hierher<\/b> - 

<a href="javascript:fromhere(' + i + ')">Von hier<\/a>' +
           '<br>Startadresse:<form action="http://maps.google.com/maps" method="get" target="_blank">' +
           '<input type="text" SIZE=23 MAXLENGTH=50 name="saddr" id="saddr" value="" />&nbsp;' +
           '<INPUT value="Los" TYPE="SUBMIT">' +
           '<input type="hidden" name="daddr" value="' + point.lat() + ',' + point.lng() +
                  // "(" + name + ")" +
           '" />';
        // The info window version with the "to here" form open
        from_htmls[i] = html + '<br>Route berechnen: 

<a href="javascript:tohere(' + i + ')">Hierher<\/a> - <b>Von hier<\/b>' +
           '<br>Zieladresse:<form action="http://maps.google.com/maps" method="get"" target="_blank">' +
           '<input type="text" SIZE=23 MAXLENGTH=50 name="daddr" id="daddr" value="" />&nbsp;' +
           '<INPUT value="Los" TYPE="SUBMIT">' +
           '<input type="hidden" name="saddr" value="' + point.lat() + ',' + point.lng() +
                  // "(" + name + ")" +
           '" />';
        // The inactive version of the direction info
        html = html + '<br>Route berechnen: <a href="javascript:tohere('+i+')">Hierher<\/a> - 

<a href="javascript:fromhere('+i+')">Von hier<\/a>';
        map.addOverlay(marker);
        marker.openInfoWindowHtml(html);

        GEvent.addListener(marker, "click", function() {
          marker.openInfoWindowHtml(html);
        });
        gmarkers[i] = marker;
        htmls[i] = html;
        i++;
        return marker;
      }
      // functions that open the directions forms
      function tohere(i) {
        gmarkers[i].openInfoWindowHtml(to_htmls[i]);
      }
      function fromhere(i) {
        gmarkers[i].openInfoWindowHtml(from_htmls[i]);
      }
    // Display the map, with some controls and set the initial location
      var map = new GMap2(document.getElementById("gmap-name"));
      map.addControl(new GSmallMapControl());
      map.addControl(new GMapTypeControl());
      map.setCenter(new GLatLng(12.3456,12.3456), zoom-level);

change your coordinates accordingly

// Set up three markers with info windows
      var point = new GLatLng(12.3456,12.3456);

set to the same coordinates as above

var marker = createMarker(point,'markername','balloon-html-code')
      map.addOverlay(marker);
          }
    // display a warning if the browser was not compatible
    else {
      alert("Sorry, the Google Maps API is not compatible with this browser");
    }
// ]]></script>

</div>

For gmap-name get a unique name for each div, where your map(s) should be displayed, zoom-level is the initial zoom level the map shows (going from 1 to 18 iirc), markername is just a name for your marker, balloon-html-code is the whole html that should be displayed in the ballon without the route stuff.

I hope this is not too badly coded – use at your own risk ;)… if anyone has any optimizations, please post a comment!

 

Not yet rated