Most of it is free, you just need to signup for a key. The advanced features would only of interest to companies that can afford the high cost.
Depends on how much data you want loaded into it. A simple pointer would be cheap because it only takes a few minutes.
google is pretty intuitive... log in... navigate to google maps... setup the map as you wish - most commonly, you would put a few thumbnails and bookmarks on the map, decide on the dimensions of the map say 600px X 400px then comes the integration part. there is a embed/iframe code that google provides and just insert it into your html code wherever required. this is broadly the complete process. of course, the configuration and changes are the ones that take most of the time. rest avail it for free...
Hi frnds am a webmaster. If anyone want to get code for google map integration just mail me geniousmagicalmyth@yahoo.com for lower cost. Thank You! Regurds Amarnath