What is the Proper Way to Destroy a Map Instance?
google-maps-api-3, javascript
Solution
The official answer is you don't. Map instances in a single page application should be reused and not destroyed then recreated.
For some single page applications, this may mean re-architecting the solution such that once a map is created it may be hidden or disconnected from the DOM, but it is never destroyed/recreated.
Problem
I recently developed an html5 mobile application. The application was a single page where navigation hash change events replaced the entire DOM. One section of the application was a Google Map using API v3. Before the map div is removed from the DOM, I want to remove any event handlers/listeners and free up as much memory as possible as the user may not return to that section again. What is the best way to destroy a map instance?