Forum Moderators: open
and in the document:
<body id="pgBod" onload="document.getElementById('pgBod').style.visibility='visible';">
I'd rather have my page wait a few more seconds before anything loads at all, then just POP onto the screen all at once.
You'd rather... but what about your users? So much time was spent on developing progressive rendering that shows some bits quickly to start reading while the rest is downloaded, and you want to override all that in one go and force people wait before showing whole lot right in their face.
In games all objects drawn on a hidden scene before showing it to the end user so that there is no flickering, but web is not the same thing. People on broadband expect page to appear in a fraction of a second, with some images downloaded as they scan the text - if they have to wait more than a second then this would cause unease and lack of comform they so used to.
Its not about how to do it, its whether it should be done in the first place, which IMO is totally unnecessary unless your users demand that faeture from you.
I'd me inclined to give the viewer something to read first, while the images are loading. Then they might not notice the wait. - Larry
If I were looking for a webhosting company, I would want near instant response from their own website.
But ...the backout "I'm bored /don't wanna wait" rate is about 70%..even with anigifs and status bar scripts to say whats happening etc....
not counting the drop off in visitors with javascript blocked since the IE SP2 fiasco...
site is hosted on a server in the USA ..I'm in Europe ..it's frustrating even for me ...I am near finished the new version with no javascipt etc etc ...
If I were you I would not go this route ...use progressive jpegs instead ..that way they get something to look at and some text to read ..99% of your visitors don't see any difference between a site hosted in the USA and one hosted in my case in France ( I do ..the server is much cheaper in the USA for much better spec and the "delay" is only one or two milliseconds different ...if any ) ..
You might also do this by loading a visible div within the main page while using another, hidden div that contains all the main content, then swap visibility at onload. Results might be a bit more variable this way, however, but you would cut down on HTTP requests, TCP slow-start phase issues, etc. Again, use rules within noscript tags to hide the splash div (I'd use display:none; slightly more efficient) and show the main. This last, of course, for those who can't handle the script (imagine me doing my best Jack Nicholson for that final bit).
use a meta refresh tag to immediately start loading your main page.
Corse the "unethical" would also optimise their new "doorway" page for KW...cept I seem to remember that something or other now blocks intant meta refresh on onloads ..and Google views them with a very jaundiced eye...had me a "doozy" ..got scared and pulled it ..
[edited by: Leosghost at 2:53 pm (utc) on Sep. 23, 2004]
