Google announced this week that the speed of a page is now being considered as part of how they rank pages on a web site.  This has some people happy, others scrambling.

There are a couple of things which need to be considered with this news.

• Google uses over 200 factors to “grade” a site, determining where it should be placed in the search engine rankings. Adding 1 additional factor, unless it is a large factor should have little effect on the search results.
• “All things being equal I would prefer to visit a fast loading site versus a slow one when I search for something” – the question is, what are the odds that all things are equal. They aren’t – so good, relevant content and links are still more important.
• Google launched the update a couple of weeks before the announcement. – And no one really noticed! This means that either, A) It’s not that big of a factor, or B) users had already identified the preferred site, and took the speed into effect, and helped Google rank the page by links, and content.

Does this mean you shouldn’t worry about a site speed – of course not, but it does mean you shouldn’t worry about it. It also means it’s something to consider, as Google, as well as many other companies, have seen that “that when a site responds slowly, visitors spend less time there”. (source)

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Firefox turns five today. For some, they remember what the Web was like in 2004 – Internet Explorer 6 was the dominant browser, and had not been updates in 3 years, web technology was stagnating because of it.

Now, browsers are faster, and doing more – new standards are coming out (HTML5, CSS3, AJAX libraries, and more) – and while the techno-babble means little to many, it also means everything.  It means websites that can do more, and do it faster.

It has also heralded other browsers becoming more popular.  Five years ago, there was no Chrome or Safari, now web surfers have options to surf the web – and the web is getting better because of it.

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I’ve seen numerous posts where people have claimed that good clean HTML leads to better SEO rankings. I’ve even talked about the lie that of the link between SEO and valid HTML.

I’ve yet to see any studies done which verify this claim and in fact I’ve even seen evidence to the opposite effect being true. I pointed out how in some competitive markets, the higher the ranking for the site the worse the validation recently in another post. This does not mean that poor code relates to higher rankings – just that valid HTML code doesn’t correlate to better rankings as some people would like to say, just like good clean code doesn’t mean the site will look better to visitors.

Matt Cutts recently did a short video on why Google’s own code doesn’t validate. (video opens new window – not allowed to embed)

Now does this mean that you should only have your web designers write invalid code – not, but it does mean you shouldn’t waste unnecessary time on it either.

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About a year ago, Google release their own browser, Chrome.  They been hard at work updating it, wanting to take more of the browser market share.

They built a good browser for power users, if you didn’t mind not having the extensions you’ve come to love and expect in Firefox.

Well now they are adding some of those extensions as well as other improvements. Read the official release here.

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Safari is the default web browser, made by Apple, that comes with any Macintosh computer, much like IE is Microsoft’s web browser. Many Mac fans will hate the analogy, but it is true. And for a while, it was only available to the Macintosh users, however Apple has recently released a version available for Windows users as well.

People who have used Safari generally fall under one of two categories. They either love it, or hate it. I know several people who own Macs, and use Firefox instead because they feel it is superior to Safari, just as many people use Firefox instead of IE for the same reason on Windows.

Safari has all the standard features you’d expect in a modern browser, tabs browsing, RSS reader, bookmark bar, etc, but nothing that really makes it stand out.

Those who love it, generally can’t explain why, but let me offer a few possibilities:

• It based off the Web-Kit engine, and therefore is a standards compliant browser, which means it runs most web pages without difficulty. the Web-Kit engine is a very powerful and flexible browser engine (what does the work behind the scenes to show you a web page) It is being used in Chrome, and several Adobe products.
• It has an fast JavaScript engine, so rich web apps run quickly.
• They are fans of Steve Jobs- and all that he does.

Now I’ve only really used it on the Windows machines, but it is obvious to tell that it is not written for Windows.

It seems to have been designed not designed for Windows users, but Mac users who have to use a Windows machine. This means someone who has only used Windows machines will have a learning curve as they figure out hw to use the new browser.

Likewise, I’ve found several issues with using Safari on a Windows machine:

• The text isn’t always clear: The font rendering (how the text displays) was designed for the Mac, and ends up not displaying clearly on a Windows machine as it fights with the Windows based system. (Text that is large or small appears blurry for lack of a better term.) As new versions have come out, they have either been improving this, or I am getting used to it over time.
• No plug-ins/add-ons for PCs. I’m told on the Mac there are numerous add-ons, like Firefox has, but on the PC, I cannot seem to figure out how to add them. Firefox makes it easy to find and add new features to the browser – something that all modern browsers should consider.
• Large pages, with complex JavaScript will sometimes give Safari issues. I’ve seen some pages become almost unusable. While they were extreme in nature, one having 4 different rich text editors, other browsers didn’t have the same issues. I first noticed this actually when a client of mine was talking about a section of his website that I had built for him.
• Moving between tabs sometimes is slow. Slow to open new tabs, slow to change tabs…just slow.
• Standard short-cuts for Windows are not available, for example, the ability to go to your home page, add a bookmark etc. These are mainly for doing things like going to your home page, and a few other common features, that doesn’t seem to be so common for Safari.
• Copy and Paste doesn’t always work. And I cannot figure out a common reason for this either. However, when I want to copy a web address or part of a web page’s text into an email, it should be a simple matter, not something I have to check and recheck several times.

After using Safari for a few months, it has been relegated to a few small tasks, and not general surfing for myself.; Ironically I am using Google Chrome more and more, and it is based off of the same web engine.

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3. Browser Know How – IE 6

Internet Explorer 7 (IE7) came out approximately 6 years after Internet Explorer 6 (IE6), a very long time between any two versions of software, but especially on the Internet. During this time, Internet Explorer 6 was the most common browser, and Microsoft took that for granted, and other, better browsers, came out.

IE7 was Microsoft’s response to Firefox, Safari, and Opera. With 6 years to develop the next generation of browser, you would expect the new version to have any and every feature under the sun. So let’s look at what it got right vs. what is got wrong during this time.

What IE7 got right

• IE7 includes an decent RSS reader.  IE6 didn’t support RSS at all, and Firefox’s and Safari’s built in readers are adequate for those who only check a few feeds.  IE7 actually has a useful RSS reader that remembers what you have seen.
• Tabs – every other browser had them, and now IE does as well.
• Improved security – built in security features help you determine, and protect you, if a site is potentially unsafe or might try to steal your information.  The protections tend to fall into three separate categories:
  • unsafe JavaScript and active X controls.  By limiting the ability for these to run, it protects you from both bad & nefarious programmers.
  • phishing sites – these are sites which try to steal your information, usually by masquerading as another site (eBay, your bank, PayPal, etc)
  • checking for security certificates – while this isn’t new, they present the danger of a site which has a bad or out of date security certificate more prominently, to increase the chance of you noticing this error
• Improved compliance with web standards.
• Support for PNG – now transparencies work.  This is a huge improvement which can allow smaller, yet better looking, images to be displayed on web sites.

What IE7 missed

• The interface. How you use your software is important, and IE7 changed/moved many of the menus and buttons.  This makes if difficult to use until you get used to it.  After using IE7 for over 9 months, I can honestly say, I’m still not that used to it. And while some elements were moved to take up less space, the over all feel for the browser is that the buttons are larger, and have large soft rounded edges, which ends up taking up more space.
• Tabs – While IE7 has them, they seem to be thrown in as an after thought.  Launching a new tab takes longer in IE7 than any other browser.
• Compliance with web standards – IE7 is the second least compliant of the major browsers when it comes to web standards, only after IE6. While it made great strides forward, it still has a ways to go. This main affects web developers and web site owners as they have to craft work arounds to make a site work correctly in all the browsers, but this does lead to larger sites that take longer to download, and sites which are harder to maintain over time. The fact that IE6 and IE7 are not standards compliant, leads many websites to not fully utilize the web as they could.
• Tight Integration with Windows – the part which Microsoft argued about bundling IE6 with Windows, still exist.  This tight integration, makes it a little faster (supposedly), however, it also puts you at higher risk of being affected by malicious code.
• Their security model – IE security in many ways has two modes, off and on. These limitations cause major issues if something needs to run, but is blocked.  Unblocking that one site can often open the door for many more sites and/or operations.  The same features which make IE easy to integrate with back office applications, also allow your system to be hacked, and without an easy way to block sites and/or operations, users get limited to either not being able to run all of the features of a site, or risking getting hacked.
• Lack of performance – many performance test show IE to be one of the slowest browsers on the market.

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Image via Wikipedia

I’ve recently been talking about Google’s new browser, Chrome, looking at why you might want to and not want to use it. So I thought I’d recap other browsers as well.

One which can’t be ignored is Internet Explorer 6 (IE6).

IE6 is probably the longest surviving web browser of all time, and is both loved and hated.

Ye old Browser

It came out in August of 2001, over 7 years ago at this point of this writing, which in Internet years means it might as well be over 700 years old.

While IE6 was highly touted as the most advanced browser when it was released, 7 years makes those features “old hat” . Newer browsers and versions have been released with even newer and better features since IE6′s initial release.

Why Upgrade

So why should you upgrade to a newer browser? Glad you asked:

1. Newer browsers have built in support to protect you from phishing attacks. These include displaying prominent messages when dealing with a potentially dangerous site.
2. Reduced chance of being hacked. IE6′s security model lends it self to being easy to hack your computer.
3. Improved support of web standards. – IE6 is the bane of web developers because of incompatibilities with current web standards, which provide an inconsistent experience compared to other browsers. Modern browsers tend to support standards more consistently.  This means that what you see on the screen is more likely to be correct, and web applications are more likely to work correctly.
4. Improved stability. IE6 is known to be a bit flaky, and crash when dealing with intense websites.
5. Improved User Interface. Most modern browsers have improved the user experience, including things like easier ways to organize your bookmarks/favorites, built in search box, etc.

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Google Chrome

In our last two posts we talked about Google Chrome. We looked most recently at why you should use Chrome. But to be fair, it isn’t the only browser out there, and some say it needs more polish to be a serious browser.

Here are some reasons to look at not using Chrome.

• (Currently) no extensions for Chrome. This will affect power users more than any one else, especially Firefox users. The power of extensions is immeasurable as it allows you to improve your experience on the web. Extensions are what makes Firefox the browser of choice for many users, and they will not likely willingly give up their favorite addons.
• I see ads. Chief among these extensions are the various Ad Blockers. It is in Google’s self interest to allow ads, as this is how they make their money. However displaying all these ads makes pages take longer to load and display. It also effects your bandwidth if you surf in a limited bandwidth environment.
• Some Internet Explorer 6 sites will not work. Some sites are designed strictly for IE6. This means that only IE will work, and in some cases not even newer versions of IE. I have to use a couple of these sites for work, so I still use Internet Explorer for them.
• No improvement in Flash Sites/Components. Google improved the JavaScript performance, because they do a lot with JavaScript. However, Flash is being used on many other sites to display graphs, charts, and add interactivity. I would say that Flash is used more often than JavaScript, and Flash is not addressed by Chrome.
• Lack of support for Linux and Macintosh computers. They are supposed to be coming however, but they are not here yet.
• Chrome is a stripped down browser in many ways. While this makes it easy to use, users may be confused by the lack of standard buttons, like there is no home button, or print button.
• Of course there are many rumors and fears about it being run by Google: (so far these are only fears, but who knows what future versions will hold)
  • Google can track my Internet use more
  • Google will prevent me from going to competing sites/search engines
  • Google will replace others ads with their own
  • Google will additional ads

Memory usage of Chrome Browser

Also interesting to note is that Chrome, while it is supposed to use a smaller memory foot print, might actually use more in the short term. This is because it uses multiple processes, each with their own memory usage, instead of one large chunk of memory. I’m currently running Chrome as my (almost) exclusive browser this week to see how it handles itself over time.

I also expect that when Chrome starts to allow extensions, it will slow a it down a bit.

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Google Chrome

I wrote recently we talked about Google’s own browser, Chrome. I said that we would look at Chrome after use for a few days to see how it performs.

Google is of course smart, and designed a browser that will help push it’s goals.  Google wants you to do more on the web. This means making the web faster, easier, and safer.

So here are some positives I’ve found with the browser after using it for a week.

• Google has the ability to put their name behind it. On the Internet, Google is king, and they can use their influence to push for certain standards.
• Chrome has been built with speed in mind. They have changed the way several core components work under the hood to be more optimized. This should allow for a smaller memory footprint and faster execution. After using running it for several days straight, it does not seem to slow like other browsers do, and it does appear from just watching it, that pages display faster and JavaScript runs faster. This is especially important if you use a lot of web based applications, such as Gmail, Google Reader, Google Docs and more.
• Chrome is a standards based browser, which means that if it runs in Firefox, or especially Safari, it should run in Chrome.
• Chrome has been designed to be stronger in the security realm. Google is claiming that extra effort has been put into ensuring that Chrome’s risk to exploitation is lower than other browsers. This should reduce the potential security holes which allow viruses to attack and phishers to steal information.
• Google has the infrastructure to test the browser in ways others cannot. To test their new browser, they have looked at their search results and started tuning based upon which sites are most likely to be viewed by its users. I’ve had a few issues with a couple of sites, but I can count them on one hand.
• Chrome reduces crash risk. Every application can crash.  This is fact of computers. However, because of how Chrome was designed, if you run multiple tabs, and one crashes, it won’t take out the rest of your tabs.  So if you are working on an email, and another tab crashes, you don’t loose your email.

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