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Before you roll your own map, I'd have a look at existing map frameworks. OpenLayers seems to be a good candidate that already has a lot of your requirements implemented.

If that doesn't fit your needs, you could still implement it yourself. SVG is particularly interesting, because you get an infinite level of zoom (given your assets are vector-graphics).

You're going to need JavaScript for the refresh code and dynamic positioning of elements anyway, so there's no way around JavaScript. Usually you'll use canvas to draw graphics, but you could use DOM elements (and CSS3) or SVG for your drawing. There's this question that lists some JavaScript libraries for game-devJavaScript libraries for game-dev.

Another interesting API is Paper.js which allows you to draw vector-graphics and images using a JavaScript API.

In the end it highly depends on your requirements. A zoomable map will look best with SVG but requires you to create your assets as SVG graphics. An existing framework like OpenLayers is probably the best way to get something on screen fast though.

Before you roll your own map, I'd have a look at existing map frameworks. OpenLayers seems to be a good candidate that already has a lot of your requirements implemented.

If that doesn't fit your needs, you could still implement it yourself. SVG is particularly interesting, because you get an infinite level of zoom (given your assets are vector-graphics).

You're going to need JavaScript for the refresh code and dynamic positioning of elements anyway, so there's no way around JavaScript. Usually you'll use canvas to draw graphics, but you could use DOM elements (and CSS3) or SVG for your drawing. There's this question that lists some JavaScript libraries for game-dev.

Another interesting API is Paper.js which allows you to draw vector-graphics and images using a JavaScript API.

In the end it highly depends on your requirements. A zoomable map will look best with SVG but requires you to create your assets as SVG graphics. An existing framework like OpenLayers is probably the best way to get something on screen fast though.

Before you roll your own map, I'd have a look at existing map frameworks. OpenLayers seems to be a good candidate that already has a lot of your requirements implemented.

If that doesn't fit your needs, you could still implement it yourself. SVG is particularly interesting, because you get an infinite level of zoom (given your assets are vector-graphics).

You're going to need JavaScript for the refresh code and dynamic positioning of elements anyway, so there's no way around JavaScript. Usually you'll use canvas to draw graphics, but you could use DOM elements (and CSS3) or SVG for your drawing. There's this question that lists some JavaScript libraries for game-dev.

Another interesting API is Paper.js which allows you to draw vector-graphics and images using a JavaScript API.

In the end it highly depends on your requirements. A zoomable map will look best with SVG but requires you to create your assets as SVG graphics. An existing framework like OpenLayers is probably the best way to get something on screen fast though.

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bummzack
bummzack
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Before you roll your own map, I'd have a look at existing map frameworks. OpenLayers seems to be a good candidate that already has a lot of your requirements implemented.

If that doesn't fit your needs, you could still implement it yourself. SVG is particularly interesting, because you get an infinite level of zoom (given your assets are vector-graphics).

You're going to need JavaScript for the refresh code and dynamic positioning of elements anyway, so there's no way around JavaScript. Usually you'll use canvas to draw graphics, but you could use DOM elements (and CSS3) or SVG for your drawing. There's this question that lists some JavaScript libraries for game-dev.

Another interesting API is Paper.js which allows you to draw vector-graphics and images using a JavaScript API.

In the end it highly depends on your requirements. A zoomable map will look best with SVG but requires you to create your assets as SVG graphics. An existing framework like OpenLayers is probably the best way to get something on screen fast though.