tangor - 9:51 pm on Apr 11, 2010 (gmt 0)

Wasn't wearing my tinfoil hat, and some of my comment was speculation... but we are stuck with that since there is little transparency from google. Comments on webmaster arrogance/ignorance are right on target as I also agree there is a "happy medium" of speed v content that should be observed.

OTOH, I'm not all that thrilled that an outside third party will be ranking "my" content against others in a speed contest, particularly since we don't know what kind of race is being run. There's a great deal of difference in a race between Nimitz class aircraft carriers and canoes. A canoe, of course, can take off faster than a carrier, it just can't transport as much. :)

Further commentary from the Register article mentioned above:

When Google first hinted it would make the change," Phil Payne, of web consultant ishram research, argued it would completely change the world of web design. "For experienced Google-watchers, this means Google has thrown web design as we know it into the trashcan," he told The Reg. "Web design as currently practiced is hereby DEAD. Flash becomes poison - lots of funny little blank pictures to build up a page's appearance will ensure no one ever sees it." Payne also points out that the change may impact the webhosts as well. "Free gigabytes are no longer enough - 2 millisecond response times will be demanded. How many can control service time on virtualised servers? "Adding a performance requirement to the web as we know it stands it on its head."

[theregister.co.uk...]