Web Page Optimization for Faster Download Time

It just makes sense. The more you have on a web page and the more you load it down with cool extras like flash, the longer it will take to download. But is this such a big problem with all the super speedy computers that we have nowadays? Apparently according to statistics around 30% of users are still using dial up. So if you want to casually disregard that 30% then go ahead and pile it on.

For those who prefer to target 100% of users Webmonkey has several tutorials that help you to optimize your site for quick and easy loading. The first tutorial makes several suggestions about trimming out excess from your site and using the correct image formats for your graphics. It also covers when to compress images and using interlacing graphics and progressive loading to speed things up. One good suggestion from the first tutorial is: if you reuse the same images, like logos and headers, on pages then they will be loaded into the user's cache and it will speed up the download times.

The second Webmonkey tutorial covers webpage layout. Tables can be a nightmare for browsers and can really slow down the download times if they are not implemented correctly. Simple tables when formated correctly are best, but when you nest table you start slowing down. The more tables you nest the long it takes the browers to read and create them. CSS is a new formating language for browsers that has become very popular and is fast becoming the standard for formating webpages. With CSS you don't need tables and you can remove all excess formatting code from the html pages. This speeds things up.

I don't think people should jump right in and start cutting down their sites before they take a look at their target market. For example how likely is it that a business that sells upscale diamond jewelry is going to be selling to someone using dial-up? I did a little research on the internet on dial-up users today and found some artciles that said most people using dial-up have the ability to upgrade but continue to use it out of choice. With competition on the web becoming fiercer every year, it doesn't make a lot of sense to dumb down your site, and make it less visually stimulating and appealing, to cater to these diehards. But still for businesses and informational sites that want to reach the largest possible amount of their target audience the challenge is in making a sweet compromise.

Michele Simon