Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google

Subject: Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google
From: Mr Red
Date: 03 Mar 09 - 08:05 AM

I check my site in public libraries here in the UK. The PC's are really thin clients, the browser is located in a server, probably Gloucester (via another server concentrating 11 local libraries' feeds)

That is enough to slow broadband to a stall anytime and throw error pages.
However I was told "it all comes from Malvern" which I took at first to be Securicor offices (company leasing and administering the system). But I used to live in Malvern. And I know a few things about sites in Malvern. Let us just say national security (because certain words slow things far more).

The curious thing is when I see a slow page on my site I feed it through Google and it comes-up instantly and faster than the original link. Call me paranoid but we know that Google is quite prepared to get into bed with governments, what we don't know is the precise terms of the deals.

But the evidence is there. If Google have better reach they will be faster - but faster than pasting the URL in the address bar?
And just how did Google get to have a better reach?

The upshot is a multi-pronged attack.
1) submit all my pages to Google, not just the domain and homepage.
2) leave the noscript navigation bar on top until the last JavaScript command. This doubles as a noscript option when JavaScript is switched off.
3) run every changed page on library systems until "Malvern" has seen it pass through a few times.
4) say three 'Hail Chrome's every morning.
5) moan a lot.
6) and feel better for it.

Subject: RE: Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google
From: Jack Campin
Date: 03 Mar 09 - 08:17 AM

Your site looks reasonably fast from here:

traceroute to 83.170.69.71 (83.170.69.71), 30 hops max, 38 byte packets
1 alan5 (193.62.127.129) 4.060 ms 4.598 ms 0.604 ms
2 gw-fw (193.63.74.131) 0.237 ms 0.218 ms 0.215 ms
3 c-pop (193.63.74.226) 1.417 ms 0.996 ms 0.839 ms
4 193.62.116.18 (193.62.116.18) 1.133 ms 1.153 ms 1.139 ms
5 so-0-1-0.warr-sbr1.ja.net (146.97.42.169) 1.806 ms 1.743 ms 1.738 ms
6 te0-0-0.manc-ban2.ja.net (146.97.35.166) 2.293 ms 2.315 ms 2.300 ms
7 gi0-3.manap-gw2.ja.net (146.97.37.58) 2.966 ms 2.486 ms 2.421 ms
8 gi2-25.man.core.enta.net (212.121.34.72) 8.581 ms 8.774 ms 8.842 ms
9 te3-1.telehouse-north0.core.enta.net (87.127.236.109) 8.799 ms 8.589 ms 8.699 ms
10 te5-2.global-switch.core.enta.net (87.127.236.42) 8.582 ms 8.682 ms 8.534 ms
11 te1-1.interxion.core.enta.net (87.127.236.86) 8.631 ms 8.594 ms 8.570 ms
12 78-33-30-154.static.enta.net (78.33.30.154) 8.665 ms 9.029 ms 8.572 ms
13 ultra1.uk2.net (83.170.69.71) 9.194 ms !<10> 8.540 ms !<10> 8.546 ms !<10>

Subject: RE: Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google
From: Mr Red
Date: 04 Mar 09 - 08:44 AM

Thanks Jack. It has speeded-up since I constantly look at it. For that very reason. There is no doubt, that since I changed the site and spent a week constantly updating that it slowed-down until the changes became fewer. I am referring to the public Library system, specifically, because I live fairly central, in Gloucestershire UK.

If you were a terrorist would you use a PC that made you somewhat annonymous? and wouldn't you find ever more subtle ways to code and encrypt?. JavaScript is a pretty good way to hide your tracks, dynamically.

I cannot fault the official methodology - it is in my (and my fellow residents') safety interests anyway - but I do need a way of using the system to best present the pages. It is for casual users and they don't want to know why it takes forever to load. They just move on quickly.

I have had to put a reminder of how to use my navigation system - I thought it was typical of the web generally but we had one comment from a naive user already. She was on a different mission - equally scatty about it as it happens when she just wanted my site to work the way she thought it should. If it took 20 seconds to load and stuck refusing to run the JavaScript she would not know what to do (like refresh).

Subject: RE: Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google
From: treewind
Date: 04 Mar 09 - 06:45 PM

"when I see a slow page on my site I feed it through Google and it comes-up instantly and faster than the original link"

Could be the boringly pedestrian explanation that the first time you visit it you load it from the server, but the second time it's already in your browser's cache?

traceroute says about 17ms here.

The site seems to load straight away, but it's got a horrid distracting floaty thing that drops down the screen telling me today's the first Wednesday and making me unwilling to attempt to read anything on the site.

Anahata

Subject: RE: Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google
From: Mr Red
Date: 05 Mar 09 - 05:13 AM

Browser's cache?

only part true. Sometimes it hangs. and never recovers. Not just my site. Some sites refuse to load one frame only. "Lost packets" is definite in that case. The number of portals it goes through makes it more likely to happen. And if the JavaScript has to be searched (particularly when it has changed) for certain nefarious patterns it definitely will slow.

In the public library system The broswer is (alledgedly) IE6 but the restrictions are so severe and variable. Each machine is set-up differently eg "no right clicks" in some apps, and on some machines but not always. This is to prevent hackers and viruses I am sure. The PC's run XP or Vista locally but the desktop is definitely always something older and more like XP. For instance I can't access browser history - so cache issues are not the same as you would expect on your own machine.

One other factor is that it takes a refresh to gaurrantee the latest version, otherwise you can (but not always) get an older version or some bizarre combination of incorrect vesrions (I may have up to 5 JavaScript files external to the page and some work in combination)

It is getting better but then my changes have pretty much slowed to nothing. So the combinations of lost packets, cache, snooping and "whatever" is behaving mostly as I intended. The naive surfer doesn't want to know why, only to know what they need to know.

Subject: RE: Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google
From: Mr Red
Date: 05 Mar 09 - 05:19 AM

AllTheWeb.com (=Yahoo) runs slower than Google and not all of that is market share and resourses. When the system is overloaded Google always wins. Micr$oft are worried about Google. Plus ça Change.

Subject: RE: Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google
From: Mr Red
Date: 05 Mar 09 - 06:12 AM

just realised - each time I go to my website, search engine links never look like they have been visited - so cache is not logging as you would expect. And the Mudcat logo didn't load this time despite several visits and refreshes withing the last hour. And if I use several instances of the browser (tabs not available) it is as if there is no history. Nothing I can control - this is a public service.

Subject: RE: Tech: Public PC's in UK slow? Use Google
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 05 Mar 09 - 06:46 AM

Mr. Red - that is a very nice webpage and USEFUL too.

I particularly like your resources layout and guiding comments

My guess is...the problem you are experiencing is the local library connectiion. Everything works just fine - even the Mudcat Logo - I have dropped in twice over the past hour to browse around and reloaded to experiment and look at page source.

Sincerely,
Gargoyle