Introduction

This chapter will cover everything about working with raster layers. The collection of recipes is composed of the most common use cases of handling raster layers in the Google Maps JavaScript API.

Raster is one of the prime data types in the GIS world. The Google Maps JavaScript API presents an extensive set of tools to integrate external sources of imagery. Also, the API enables application developers to change the styling of its base maps with a palette of practically unlimited array of choices.

This chapter will introduce you to changing the styling of base maps and will then continue by covering how to display raster data, focusing on external TMS (Tile Map Services), where the raster layer is composed of organized tiles in the map display (for example, OpenStreetMap). Lastly, there are a number of raster layers (traffic, transit, weather, bicycle, and Panoramio) that can be presented on the map by integrating them with the Google Maps JavaScript API.