Why does my header load so slow? And how do I fix it.

Discussion in 'HTML & Website Design' started by jaredgravatt, Jun 1, 2008.

  1. #1
    Ok, so I have overcome many obsticles in my attempt to learn HTML.

    Well now I have encountered another.

    Can someone please tell me why my header loads so slow and how to fix it.

    Website is www.entrepreneurprofit.co.nz

    Thanks in advance,

    Jared.
     
    jaredgravatt, Jun 1, 2008 IP
  2. rochow

    rochow Notable Member

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    #2
    Because its 100kb.

    Dialup = 20 seconds to load just that image
    256KB net = 5 seconds to load just that image
    512KB net = 2.5 seconds to load just that image

    That's assuming your site is the only thing they have loading (I always have multiple tabs opening at once, email client is always checking for new emails, msn, skype, programs updating, windows updating....)

    Anything over 8 seconds will see visitors leaving, the longer it takes the more go (after all, most sites don't have that much content that can't be found elsewhere)

    Use this to compress it more: http://tools.dynamicdrive.com/imageoptimizer/
     
    rochow, Jun 1, 2008 IP
  3. Xavier_3D

    Xavier_3D Well-Known Member

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    #3
    Its 55.4Kb Now Actually and it didn't load slow for me. I guess you have alread edited it.
     
    Xavier_3D, Jun 2, 2008 IP
  4. mooseweb

    mooseweb Banned

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    #4
    You have to realize that your customize your site based around your target audience.

    For example:
    You have a gaming website, you can assume faster connection speeds which means larger file sizes are ok...
     
    mooseweb, Jun 2, 2008 IP
  5. ctrq

    ctrq Peon

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    #5
    convert your header image to gif. file size will be smaller
     
    ctrq, Jun 2, 2008 IP
  6. camp185

    camp185 Well-Known Member

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    #6
    camp185, Jun 2, 2008 IP
  7. lifeAfterEbay

    lifeAfterEbay Peon

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    #7
    you should ad the alt tag
     
    lifeAfterEbay, Jun 2, 2008 IP
  8. whirlybird20

    whirlybird20 Guest

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    #8
    You need to ignite it. Ignite is a tool that every website designer should know, it makes your images smaller, with out loosing much quality.

    Download ignite from here.

    I usually use the settings: Quality = 90, and progressive=yes, this gives you a nice looking header, but about half the size.

    See how fast your header loads after I optimized it.
     
    whirlybird20, Jun 2, 2008 IP
  9. rochow

    rochow Notable Member

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    #9
    Yeah but you aren't on dialup!

    I have 1500kbs, but I often hit my cap and am shaped to dialup speed for a while until the new month starts.

    Trust me, you crack the shits at any site over 30kb in size when you are on dialup :D

    Read above. That's using fast internet, which obviously will load quickly.

    When creating a website, all users have to come into consideration, which includes those on dialup, mobiles, and slow broadband connections (or even those with faster connections but are downloading at the same time they are trying to surf)

    No way - not on an image like this (highly graphical, tons of colours)

    I disagree. Firstly, I couldn't even install it (as its not Vista compatible) and secondly reading through the feature list, it's got nothing that tons of free programs don't have.

    Plus the fact I used Photoshop on the header that had similar quality, and far smaller file size than the header image ignite made.

    I wouldn't recommend buying it, there are lots of free alternatives out there.

    Ding ding ding we have a winner!

    Take WoW for example: that site is full of images. Yes, dialup users will come. But how many of them will play WoW anyway? Next to none, because their connection isn't fast enough. That's a great example of targetting to your clients.

    At the end of the day you can't please everyone, so you might as well make your target market jumping for joy (I am not advocating throwing accessibility, cross-browser compatibility or minimalistic sites out the window!) and make sure that if other people come to your site, they can at least experience it.

    Another great example is some flash sites: They come to a screen at the start with 2 versions: Full quality flash (fast connections) or standard html (slow connections) That way everyone can get the version they want (full effects, or fast loading) Apart from the fact its a pain to pick the version everytime you visit the stupid site, its a good concept.
     
    rochow, Jun 2, 2008 IP
    1 person likes this.
  10. snowbird

    snowbird Notable Member

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    #10
    Compress the other images on your page as well. freesoftwareS.jpg is nearly 12K and should be a gif. If you need to, slice your header and use different compression levels. That is a heavy header though, so you may want to try something a little less flashy.

    Good luck.
     
    snowbird, Jun 2, 2008 IP
  11. quicksilver101

    quicksilver101 Peon

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    #11
    Dont use tables for layouts! CSS & divs will cut your load times a fair bit if used properly. Plus you should think about shrinking the actual size of the banner (vertically maybe?)
     
    quicksilver101, Jun 2, 2008 IP