2 min read
There are few experiences more frustrating than having to wait for a website to load, especially when you are running short of time. However, thanks to a much-needed analysis conducted by Google Chrome engineers, infuriated users might just be saved from the trouble of accessing those agonizingly slow websites in the first place.
In a recently published blog post, Google explained that it was working on several ‘speed badging’ mechanisms that would let users know if a particular website that they’ve been meaning to access is going to load slowly. This would be achieved either by simple text warnings or other signs indicating that the site’s loading time is going to be horrendous.
According to Chrome engineers, websites that load slowly do so because they have been coded poorly. This is the reason why they are now working on metrics that can determine if sites are developed in a way that makes them inherently slow.
Another reason for why we get excruciatingly slow page load times from some websites is because they are typically waiting for responses from off-site resources like ad networks and social media widgets that analyze user behavior.
The engineers plan to indicate slow sites by either including text stating that the page “usually loads slow”, or by changing the color of a progress bar to let the user know that the page is going to take its time.
In an attempt to ensure that they continue to contribute to a positive user experience, the engineers stated that they would continue to fine-tune their approach to identifying and labeling slow websites.
“We are being very mindful with our approach to setting the bar for what is considered a good user experience and hope to land on something that is practically achievable by all developers,” it said.
