Google maps perfomance with polylines and markers

Question

We are on decision point - which technology will be used for our highly loaded flight deals map. There is simple test - http://buruki.com/gmap but if i choose London or Moscow( they have ~200-300 flights destinations) most of browsers( firefox 3.5 and IE for sure :-) ) are extremely slow. Now there are simple markers and simple polylines, MarkerManager or other things are not use.

I would like to ask gmap experts - is it possible to have almost immediate response time with ~200-300 polylines and markers on map. If yes - any live examples from existing projects.

PS we already have silverlight( http://buruki.com/map ) implementation, it has great speed and great disadvantages :-( - plugin is required, linux users are out of bossiness. Is it possible to achieve same speed(or close) as silverlight has with gmaps?

Answer 1

Clustering markers using some sort of MarkerManager will allow you to get the fast response times you want. I would go the JavaScript route because the web is built on open standards and most devices will support it. Browsers are getting faster all the time.

I would also say that having heaps of markers on a map doesn't look aesthetically pleasing. I'd much rather see some sort of clustering and then a reveal of the markers as I zoom in closer.

You need to keep in mind the JavaScript is never going to be as quick as Silverlight but it will have a far greater reach. You won't be able to use your Silverlight map on most mobile devices (iphone, ipad, android...)