by Bob McElwain
You can answer this question yourself. It is easy
to do, and we will get to it. First, let's be clear
about what fast means.
A number of people have said my pages download fast.
Some have given numbers. But what do they mean? I
recently read pages should download in 4 seconds.
An expert site designer reported my pages downloaded
within 10-15 seconds. A marketing guru gave times
from 8 to 10 seconds. Yet on my system, it takes about
20 seconds.
Why are qualified people reporting different speeds
as the maximum acceptable? The difference lies in
our individual connections to the Web. While the modem,
disk, and CPU speed of your system are factors, the
route traveled to your ISP (Internet Service Provider)
and its performance are also critical. An overloaded
ISP can really slow things down. Then there is the
speed at which a server can deliver information.
Back to the question, there is only one way to answer
it. While the opinions of others are important, the
numbers they give are not, because all are trapped
by the limitations of their equipment and ISP.
The only way to obtain good data is to delete your
cache files. Your browser will not take the time to
download anything already on your disk, even if you
click Reload. Find your cache directory and delete
all files in it. Now download your home page and note
the time.
Given graphics repeated from page to page, such as
navigation buttons, times to download subsequent pages
will be faster, and need not be considered. It is
the time to download the first page with no files
in cache that matters, for this is what new visitors
will experience.
Next, check the web for sites similar to yours. (If
you have been to the site, remember to delete all
cache files.) Check the download speed and compare
it to yours.
A common reason for differences in times is the number
and size of graphics. Ignore results for pages containing
more or larger graphics than you use, for they really
slow things down. If you find that pages similar to
yours in size and graphic content download as yours
do, you are fine, regardless of the numbers.
Why? Because all surfers are trapped by their system
and ISP. All will have become accustomed to a speed
they feel is adequate. You can do nothing to improve
this speed, beyond being sure you are using a fast
host. Thus if the download speed for your site compares
favorably with that of similar sites, your visitors
will be content.
If your download speed is greater than those of equivalent
sites, take a hard look at your host. A server ften
makes money by selling more capacity than it has.
Then your visitors will always find things moving
too slowly. (If you need a fast server, consider pair.com
or jumpline.com; I use both and find their delivery
speeds to be excellent.)
So ignore all those numbers given about maximum download
times, because the people giving them are also trapped
by their gear and ISP. Compare the performance of
your pages to similar pages. If yours are as good
or better, all is well.
About the Author:
Bob helps webmasters grow their sites by showing them
how to work smarter for more fun and profit with less
effort. He has been marketing on the Web since 1993.
Visit his newest site: http://SiteTipsAndTricks.Com
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