Performance and tips for using the map
How to keep the map fast and stable: turn off unneeded layers, use 2D for navigation and 3D when needed, zoom in before measuring or drawing, let tiles cache, and recover if the map won't load (WebGL).
The map is the heaviest module in Arcili — it draws satellite imagery, parcels, planning data, 3D buildings and sun simulation in real time using your browser's graphics card. With a few simple habits it stays fast and stable, even on a laptop or phone. This guide collects the changes that make the biggest difference, and helps you recover if the map stutters or refuses to load.
1Turn off layers you are not using
Every active layer is extra data that has to be fetched and drawn on every pan and zoom. The single biggest speed gain comes from showing fewer layers at once.
Open Layers at the bottom of the map and enable only what you actually need:
Map layers Satellite Parcels POI (transport)
Planning Local plans Municipal plans Sub-areas
The satellite layer is the most GPU-heavy image layer. Turning Satellite off and using the plain base map makes panning and zooming noticeably faster — switch satellite back on only when you need to see the actual roof and terrain conditions.
Planning data (Local plans, Municipal plans, Sub-areas) is polygon-heavy across large areas. Keep it off while you navigate, and enable it only once you have zoomed in on the area you are studying.
2Use 2D for fast navigation, 3D when you need it
The map can show buildings and terrain in 3D, but 3D uses far more of your graphics card than flat 2D. Switch between them with the buttons in the toolbar:
- 2D — flat map. Fastest for searching, panning and finding your way around.
- 3D — buildings and terrain rise up. Use it for sun and shadow analysis or massing — not as your default view.
On phones and older laptops we recommend navigating in 2D and only switching 3D on once you are over the plot you want to study. It saves battery and keeps the view fluid.
3Measure and draw tools: zoom in first
Measure and the drawing tool place interactive objects on top of the map. Across a large, zoomed-out area they become heavy to compute — and imprecise at the same time, because each pixel covers many metres.
Zoom in on the area you want to measure or draw before you start. That gives you both better performance and accurate placement. The drawing tool gives you:
- Drop pin — set a point
- Draw line — distance between points
- Draw polygon — outline an area (finish with Close polygon)
- Draw circle — radius from a centre
- Delete object — remove a drawing again
Clean up your drawings and remove pins you are done with via Delete object. Many leftover objects on the map drag performance down over time.
4Let tiles cache — and avoid many open map tabs
Once you have visited an area, Arcili temporarily stores the map tiles in your browser so they load instantly the next time you return. You therefore don't need to avoid going back and forth — the second visit is always faster than the first.
Do keep an eye on how many tabs you have open with maps or other 3D-heavy pages. Your browser only allows a limited number of simultaneous 3D graphics contexts, and if you hit that ceiling the map may refuse to load.
If you see the message "The map could not be loaded" with the text that the browser could not initialise WebGL, you most likely have too many tabs with 3D graphics open. Close some of the other tabs and press Try again — or Reload page if the map is still black.
5Help Arcili help you: keep things fresh
A few final habits that keep the experience smooth:
- Reload during long sessions. If the map has been open for hours and has started to stutter, a fresh Reload page almost always fixes it — graphics memory is released.
- Use the zoom buttons for big jumps. + and − give controlled zoom steps; scroll-zooming across many levels at once forces many tiles in at the same time.
- Close panels you are not using. Side panels such as parcel info and map layers keep drawing their own content; close them when you are done.
If you still get a black map or a WebGL error that won't go away, it is almost always the browser — not your internet connection. See the dedicated troubleshooting guide below.