Internet Magazine
Web accelerators. The quick and the dead.
Author/s: Darren Cole
Web accelerators don't have the best reputation. But new versions
have brought more intuitive methods of speeding up your browsing. Darren
Cole and the labs team find out once and for all whether they're worth
having
The Internet has revolutionised the way we use computers and steadily
infiltrates more and more areas of our leisure and business lives. In
short, it's a fabulous thing. But, wow, is it slow! In reality, being
online often involves tedious page downloads, broken links and DNS
server errors.
So is there anything you can do about it? Well, there are two clear
options--buy a faster connection, with installation fees and higher
running costs, or install a piece of Web accelerator software that costs
less than [pound]30. Hmmmm ... it's not hard to divine which option
appears the more attractive, and with several of these accelerators
claiming speed increases of up to 300 per cent it seems we could indeed
achieve the kind of download times usually associated with fast ISDN
lines or even better.
Before we take a look at some of these accelerators in action, let's
look at their background. The first software that claimed to optimise
your browsing appeared five years ago, but it was the release of
NetSonic in 1998 that saw the biggest advance in technology and it's
still the most popular Web accelerator --we're testing version 3.0.
Web accelerators work in a number of ways, but there are two main
methods. The first is the smart cache system. This watches your browsing
habits and stores pages visited regularly. When you revisit a page, the
Web accelerator displays the cached version while checking for any
updates online.
The second takes advantage of the times when your modem is dormant,
such as when you're reading a page of text. The Web accelerator jumps in
and begins downloading pages linked to the page you're reading. The
desired upshot is that when you finally click on a link, your trusty Web
accelerator is ahead of you and has the page ready to display.
The first Web accelerators employed these two methods in their
crudest forms and only really worked for people with particular browsing
habits. But as they evolve and more is learned about how people spend
their time online and the routes they take from page to page, it's
becoming possible to tailor Web accelerators for individual users. The
truly successful ones watch how you browse and alter settings to suit
the way you work.
Many of the newer packages now tinker with the file where many fear
to tread--the Windows Registry. Contained within this vast database of
Windows settings are several that can be altered to achieve a faster Web
connection. At least that's what the manufacturers would have us
believe, and many software packages alter dozens of Registry settings in
their mission to enhance your Web experience.
So Web accelerators don't improve the actual speed of your connection
- that's down to your hardware and the quality of your line, Instead
they use cunning devices to anticipate your moves and make your finite
download capacity more efficient.
One man's meat...
So why don't browser writers include these accelerators in their
software? The simple answer is one of support. If browser manufacturers
included accelerated settings they'd improve things for some people, but
slow down browsing for others.
If you spend most of your time online viewing text rich pages, and
reading for four to five minutes before following a link, then a Web
accelerator that relies on read-ahead cacheing might be for you. It
doesn't take long to load a text page and, using the spare dormant time,
a Web accelerator could easily have your next chosen link ready to go.
If you spend most of your time on pages with moving graphics and large
picture files, that same accelerator could slowdown your surfing. A56k
dial-up connection can only receive so much data at once and a modem
trying to keep up with moving video and sound will not experience enough
dormant time to make use of a Web accelerator's main features.
There's a school of thought that opposes Web accelerators. ISPs have
a limited bandwidth to provide all the information to and from their
clients and the home Net user. They rely on the fact that there are
times when modems are inactive to maintain a steady flow of traffic. Web
accelerators make sure the modem is in constant use. If only a few
people use Web accelerators, the problem isn't too bad, but if we all
start using them, we could be left with the electronic version of the
M25 during rush hour. Whether this is a problem for the consumer or
something for the ISP to resolve is a matter for debate.
Another possible problem is that Web accelerators download lots of
stuff you never bother to look at. Ads provide funding for a great deal
of quality pages provided to us for free. A Web accelerator views plenty
of adverts, but it doesn't mean the person the ads are targetting has
seen them.
The final problem is that ISPs charge some sites according to the
number of page downloads. If people are using Web accelerators, you
could be paying for unviewed pages. These arguments are, perhaps, just
another passing dilemma, but until they're resolved they pose a threat.
Not big for Macs
As is so often the case, Mac people are not as well catered for as
those using PCs. There are Web accelerators available that employ some
of the same methods as their PC brethren, but they have a couple of
omissions. The Mac operating system does not employ a registry in the
same way that Windows does and, in fact, many of the settings altered in
Windows are self-adjusting on the Mac anyway.
NetSonic 3.0
A well supported package that's worth a look, as long as you like ads
NetSonic boasts a claimed seven million users. It comes in two
versions, NetSonic, which is a free download, or NetSonic Pro, which
costs around [pound]25.
The free version omits a few advanced features, including
connection-specific optimisation. Preloading of graphics is also
disabled, although this feature can slowdown the browser speed of
dial-up modem users. It also leaves out the advanced Registry tweaks
designed to eke out every last possible speed boost. These aren't
essential components of the program, but the free version of NetSonic
delivers a constant stream of adverts to the top of your browser using a
little animated rocket, which can be distracting. There's also a Web3000
Icon that can't be removed from the bottom of the window, and a large ad
window appears periodically, encouraging you to upgrade to the Pro
version of NetSonic.
It's fair enough to include some advertising with a free product, but
this amount makes NetSonic a little too irritating to be practical. This
is a matter for the individual user, however, as, gripes aside, NetSonic
is a well-supported and thought out product.
The installation is painless, despite forcing you to register and
giving you the option to accept 'Cool offers' via email.
The first time you run NetSonic, the settings window appears. Here
you can select your level of acceleration and browse the well-written
online manual. A floating toolbar also appears which gives helpful tips
and provides information on the level of acceleration you're currently
enjoying. This can be moved around the screen or switched off with a
single click.
As with all products of this nature, quantifying its actual success
or failure is difficult. We ensured a fully rounded test by simulating
different browsing styles. First, we started at your favourite
magazine's own Web site and followed a number of hyperlinks until we
arrived at the World Conservation Union. The next link wasn't clicked
until the page had fully loaded. Each product was tested with a clean
cache first, and the route was then repeated, giving the accelerator a
chance to build up a selection of saved files.
The results of these tests can be seen more clearly in the results
table on page 122. NetSonic gave a worse performance than an
unaccelerated Internet Explorer (version 5.5) on the first run, but did
provide a slight improvement of about 20 seconds on its next attempt. In
our opinion, it's not really worth enduring all those ads for such a
limited result.
Our other, less formal, test involved roaming around the vast BBC Web
site. This has a fairly equal measure of text and graphics, so it's a
good test of a Web accelerator's ability to read ahead and display a
page more quickly. We gave the software a fair chance by reading most of
the material on each page before moving on. There was a noticeable
improvement in display speed here. As NetSonic only preloads text, it
could display each link quickly and the graphics gradually loaded as
normal. NetSonic impressed us here.
Altogether NetSonic is a well-executed, presented and supported
product that produces noticeable, though not remarkable, results. If you
can put up with the ads, it's worth checking out.
NetSonic
Cost Free, or $29.99 (around [pound]20) for Pro version
Pros Easy to use and well supported
Cons Annoying level of advertising
Contact NetSonic
Phone (001 425) 836 3000
www.netsonic.com
Accelerate 2000
This shareware program relies on tweaking the Registry to boost your
speed
Accelerate 2000 is a shareware product that you can use for 15 days
before paying to register. The benefit of this is that there are no ads
to put up with, or changes to your browser's appearance. And if the
product works for you, then the $20 (about [pound]15) asking price
surely isn't too harsh for improved Net activity.
Accelerate 2000 has no smart cache or read-ahead system and instead
relies entirely on tweaking your Registry to achieve its speed boost.
But even after shunning the two accelerator mainstays, Accelerate 2000
still claims to achieve up to a 300 percent improvement in speed.
Installation is quick and easy. You're given options for adding a
desktop or start menu icon after which you're presented with the product
notes, which surprisingly admit that you might not notice any
improvement at all. In this case, you should simply uninstall the
product without paying for registration -- it's always good to see a
little honesty.
Once you've read through the notes, the settings menu appears. From
here you can choose your acceleration type from a list of five
supporting modem and cable/LAN connections. The help file has a guide to
the various Registry settings, but no information on what each
acceleration type does or how they differ.
Perhaps the worry is that the pesky consumer might simply input the
Registry tweaks and save themselves [pound]15. Anyone with the time
could easily look at just a couple of the thousands of sites devoted to
the mysterious Windows Registry and learn how to use these tweaks. But
surely the point of this product is to save you time and automate the
process.
If you'd rather have a little more control over the settings, there's
a neat little wizard that guides you through the various options.
There's a brief explanation of what each setting might achieve and a
reboot at the end to let the Registry tweaks take effect.
In practice, Accelerate 2000 shaved about one minute off the
unaccelerated Windows time in our cache test. This was running with a
clean cache. The second time round, once Windows had cached the pages,
it managed a slightly less impressive 15-second improvement. We tried
the tests using all five selectable acceleration options and found
little difference between them. The settings suggested for LANs
performed the worst. On our 56k modem, setting 2 worked best. We'd love
to tell you what this setting does, but the software offers no clues.
In our read-ahead test, once again involving a leisurely browse
around the BBC site, there was no noticeable improvement over a standard
Windows setup. Even though this test was designed to examine the
effectiveness of a smart cache, absent here, we should still have seen
signs of the claimed 300 per cent improvement. We saw none.
Accelerate 2000 seemed to improve download speeds in a timed test,
but it fell way short of its promises.
Accelerate 2000
Cost 15-day free trial then $19.99 registration fee
Pros Simple to use. Good support guide. No ads
Cons Selectable choices unexplained
Contact Webroot software
Phone (001 303) 554 6528
www.webroot.com
Modem Booster
Another Registry tweaker, but this one picks the best settings for
you
Modem Booster, like Accelerate 2000, relies entirely on Registry
tweaks to achieve its acceleration. But while Accelerate 2000 gives you
five seemingly identical setups, Modem Booster takes a more formulated
approach.
Installation is a little more fiddly as the program comes as a
standard Zip file, but we encountered no problems. Once installed, the
program autostarts and you're presented with a friendly looking Wizard
screen. From here you can select your own settings or let Modem Booster
perform tests on your dial-up connection to select the most appropriate
settings.
To perform the tests, Modem Booster needs your ISP username and
password to bypass your usual dial-up software. This should present no
problem if you made a note of these details when you signed up to an
ISP, otherwise a phone call will be necessary. Once the details are in
place you're prompted to choose from an Express, Moderate or Exhaustive
tune-up test. We went for the Exhaustive option. If you're going to save
time later, it makes sense to be sure the software gets the settings
right.
This is where Modem Booster scores over the competition. Picking a
group of settings and using them for a bit before trying another one
feels a little too hit and miss. Modem Booster tests each possible
combination of settings over a couple of hours (yes, you might need to
make a few cups of tea) leaving less room for other factors to affect
the results. This instils a little more confidence that your Registry is
optimised, even if it doesn't make for massive speed improvements.
So on to the tests. Welt Modem Booster achieved the best time so far
in our initial test with an empty cache, improving over the standard
Windows time by a minute and a half. This is probably too big a
difference to putdown to an erratic connection performance. Once the
cache had filed the appropriate pages, the difference was not so
dramatic and Modem Booster scored almost identically to Accelerate 2000.
In our read-ahead test we couldn't notice any difference. The pages
still took roughly the same time to appear, but noticing a one or
two-second improvement on the loading of a single page is unlikely. The
timed test demonstrated the best decrease in download times so far. Over
a couple of hours, the time saved here could add up to much more
impressive figures.
Though many of the available Web accelerators seem to treat the task
as a black art, with no methodology set in stone, Modem Booster works
out the best settings for your connection, which impressed us. The main
problem with Web accelerators is that one package isn't universally
acceptable to everyone. Modem Booster doesn't try to impose a set of
predetermined settings, although you can choose these if you wish.
Again, the speed increase wasn't fantastic, but the feeling that the
applied settings are appropriate to your system is a reassuring one.
Modem Booster 2.3
Cost $19.95 (around [pound]13.5)
Pros Measurable speed increase. Systematic approach to optimisation
Cons Bypasses your usual dial-up software
Contact inKline Global
http://inklineglobal.net
WebWasher 3
Ignoring unnecessary page elements can really speed up your
browsing...
WebWasher takes an alternative approach to Web acceleration. There
are always elements of a Web page you could do without. Animations, Java
applets and ads are among the largest unnecessary time-consumers
encountered online, and WebWasher achieves its speed boost by
eradicating these.
Installation is a simple affair. The program starts up, prompts you
to select your browser and connects to your ISP. It then takes you to
WebWasher's home page and selects your personal settings before
disappearing into the background. Although WebWasher is free for home
use, no advertising is included -- in fact, blocking adverts is one of
the main ways it increases browsing speed.
WebWasher doesn't use Registry hacks, a smart cache or a read-ahead
system. It doesn't actually speed up your downloads at all. Instead, you
decide which elements are unnecessary and leave them out, thus
increasing the speed at which a readable page appears.
The main filters include a 'dimension filter' that lets you select
adverts for exclusion. You can also cancel pop-up windows and exclude
JavaScripts using a selectable list that includes scripts started on
initial page download or close. Animations can be set to a single frame.
There's a privacy section that lets you block such undesirable
content as referrers and Web bugs (used to track your browsing habits),
and you can also list URLs for complete blocking.
In our tests WebWasher performed quite well. It outdid all the
competitors in our cache-free test, beating Windows by over two minutes.
In the cache test it performed slightly worse than the other products.
This is probably because a cache works best when saving large graphics
and serving them to the browser. WebWasher omits many of these graphics
in the first place.
Our informal browsing test bore good results too. We could see a
clear speed increase when loading pages with larger graphics and
adverts, although WebWasher did mistake a couple of pictures for ads. If
you feel the page you're viewing would benefit from its full content,
you can temporarily disable WebWasher by right clicking on its toolbar
icon.
Strictly speaking WebWasher is a Web filter. There are many Web
filters available, most of which take a 'child friendly Internet'
standpoint for their marketing purposes. The makers of WebWasher seem to
have spotted a side effect of partial content filtering and used it to
their advantage, and fair play to them, they've got a point.
Despite taking a completely different approach, WebWasher achieves
some of the most tangible results so far seen. Some of you might claim,
and quite rightly, that there's little point filtering out most of the
hard work that's gone into a multimedia Web site. If you've got a slower
connection, or if you can take or leave fancy animations, then WebWasher
will save you time online.
WebWasher 3.0
Cost Free for non-commercial use
Pros Works well with content-rich pages. No adverts. Mac version
Cons Only 20Mb space free
Contact WebWasher
Phone (0049 5 251) 500 540
www.webwasher.com
NetSuperSonic 2
This tool lets you tweak your settings and then tests the speed
increase
Installing NetSuperSonic is simple, although there's no option to add
a desktop or taskbar Icon and you have to run the program from the Start
menu.
As with Modem Booster, you can manually alter the Registry settings
or accept one of three preset configurations. These three take into
account all connection speeds from the lowly dial-up modem up to those
lucky T3 subscribers.
There's a reassuring button that restores the Windows default
settings if you're not happy with the performance.
We tried playing with the advanced options as well as the express
ones and found little difference in browsing speed between them.
Once you've chosen your settings, a reboot is necessary before you
can click the Test your speed button. This directs your browser to the
Telus.net speed test page where you can select various file sizes, from
10k upwards, to be sent to your computer. Once this is done, the page
displays information on the download speed. Having a link to this page
adds a little, much-needed, solid evaluation and is a welcome addition.
Our tests reported speed increases of between three and 10 seconds,
depending on the file size.
In our tests, NetSuperSonic achieved pleasing results very similar to
those of Modem Booster. It was over a minute quicker than the
unoptimised Windows test with no cached files, and over 20 seconds
faster using a cache. In our leisurely browsing ramble around the BBC we
couldn't spot any obvious increase in performance.
NetSuperSonic performed as well as the other products on test,
although its application was not as polished as Modem Booster's. They
both take a similar approach, but NetSuperSonic doesn't include the
option to test your personal connection setup and optimise settings
accordingly.
The uninstall facility was the least functional of all our products
on test -- selecting NetSuperSonic for uninstallation does not, as you
would expect, remove the whole application and leaves at least one other
program behind.
There's no mention of this during the uninstall process -- we found
the information at the bottom of a support page on the company's Web
site. This omission would have been simple to fix and lowers your
confidence in the application as a whole.
When there's so much professional software out there to choose from
it's tiny details like this that separate the winners from the losers.
Despite a favourable speed test, NetSuperSonic loses marks for a couple
of easily rectifiable problems.
NetSuperSonic 2.0
Price $20.99 (around [pound]14)
Pros Performed well in speed test. Includes link that tests
improvement in download times
Cons Inefficient uninstall routine. Short on options
Contact NetSuperSonic
www.netsupersonic.com
Web Optimizer 3000
Boasting a 500 per cent speed increase, this package inspires great
expectations
Web Optimizer has a great deal in common with NetSuperSonic both in
its operation and its results. Installation is via a Zip file after
which you have to run the program from the Start menu -- once again
there's no option for you to place an icon on the desktop.
All of the accelerators on test claim a rather optimistic level of
performance gain, but WebOptimizer takes the prize, declaring a
staggering 500 per cent improvement. We were expecting great things from
this little application.
On start-up, you're first prompted to select your operating system
from Windows 95 onwards, including NT, 2000 and ME. A settings screen
then lets you choose from just two groups of Registry tweaks, one suited
to dial-up modems and another to high-speed connections. This was the
lowest number of available options out of all our test products. Any one
with limited knowledge of this type of application would remain ignorant
as there's no option to alter the settings manually or any explanation
of the changes the software makes to your system. There are also no
support files included, although there's a link to the company Web site
where help files can be downloaded.
After a restart you're ready to go. In practice, Web Optimizer
performed much like NetSuperSonic, falling way short of the 500 per cent
improvement we were anticipating. Web Optimizer gave another pleasing
time in our initial empty cache test. Over a minute and a half was
shaved off the standard Windows time. This figure came down to a less
impressive 20-second improvement once Windows had built a cache of the
pages we visited. This second result was fairly typical of all the
products-only 30 seconds separated them all.
During our browsing test there was no noticeable improvement in
download times. None of the Registry tweak programs managed to improve
things enough that we could see a marked improvement. Only a stopwatch
was able to pick out the fairly small speed gains actually achieved.
Only those programs that didn't rely on Registry tweaks were able to
produce a noticeable improvement in our browsing test. Our timed tests
showed that an optimised Registry does indeed bare improved times, but
those times are a small enhancement to an already changeable system.
Unfortunately it was not only the style and application that Web
Optimizer shared with NetSuperSonic. Another shoddy uninstall routine
was in evidence here, as Web Optimizer left behind another application
after the main software had been deleted. Funnily enough it was the same
software that NetSuperSonic left behind, leading us to suspect that
these two products might also share an author.
In conclusion, a similar performance, but with similar failings
leaves us with a similar, disappointing score.
Web Optimizer 3000 1.6
Cost $23.50 (around [pound]16)
Pros Speed increase comparable with other tested products
Cons No support files. Limited options. Poor uninstall routine
Contact Web Optimizer
www.weboptimizer3000.com
Conclusion: which Web accelerator speeds ahead?
It's always tricky to pick out a winner but the problem is
exacerbated when you have to take the erratic nature of the Internet
into account. We've all experienced diabolical performance one minute
followed by periods of seemingly holy intervention, which makes Web
accelerators so difficult to pin down on performance.
Should you install a Web accelerator? That's impossible to answer
without considering your connection. You might notice a huge
improvement, you might not. So it's worth trying out a couple.
There are many variables that can affect your Net connection, right
up to the operating system you use. If you're using Windows 95, programs
that rely on Registry tweaks should provide you with a more noticeable
improvement. Windows 98 and ME include better Registry management so
have less room for optimisation.
If you don't like animations and adverts taking up your precious
browsing time, WebWasher is the one for you. It will improve the rate at
which pages are displayed, but they'll look less pretty.
NetSonic comes out on top as an integrated system, although you might
resent the advertising it sends you. NetSonic and WebWasher were the
only programs that demonstrated speed increases you could actually see.
Modem Booster is also worth a mention as the most professional of the
Registry tweak programs.
As an overall winner, we have to name WebWasher. It was the only
application to offer a Mac version, it's free to use, has no irritating
advertising, and provides results.
Get your Registry to go faster
Anyone with experience of using Windows will have encountered the
Registry at some time, usually in the context of being warned away from
it. But it really isn't as scary as some would have us believe, so long
as you keep an up to date backup saved.
The main settings altered by Web accelerators are, firstly, the
Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU).This controls the size of the largest
packet of information that can be sent over a network. If this is set
too high, you get reduced performance as the information can get
fragmented. From Windows 98 onwards, this setting is adjusted
automatically, but many Web accelerators increase it.
The Maximum Segment Size (MSS) controls the information within the
packet and is also altered by Web accelerators.
The other main registry hack involves the TCP Receive Window (RWIN).
This sets how much data someone can send without receiving an
acknowledgement from the other end. It's easy to see that too large a
setting can make your connection less efficient. If there's a problem
with a packet of data, a large setting will increase the time before
your system is aware of it, while too small a setting results in a very
slow data transfer rate.
There are plenty of Web sites devoted to tweaking the Windows
registry, but a good place to start is ITP's tutorial found at
www.itp-journals.com/sasample/E1209.pdf. If you're feeling confident,
take a look at the countless registry hacks found at Active Networks
Registry pages (www.activewin.com/tips/reg/index.shtml).
Considering your cache
As most of us have a number of favourite Web pages we continually
revisit, a cache is the most obvious way to speed up our browsing. Very
simply, a cache is a folder where copies of pictures and other Web site
content can be stored. The first time you visit a Web page it must be
downloaded, and we all know that can take some time. The files are then
stored in the cache and so can be displayed instantly the next time you
visit that page. Windows employs a simple cache system already, which
has its home in the Temporary Internet Files folder. The Windows cache
saves all files and wipes them out again after a set period of time. It
pays no attention to your actual browsing habits and keeps material from
a site you visit once for the same time as it keeps material from a site
you visit every day. This is where Web accelerators can improve things.
They employ intelligent cache systems that keep the files you need most
often and discard the less popular ones. Some also send cached versions
of entire pages to your b rowser, so you can be viewing a page
instantly, while they check for any changed content and update the
screen as necessary.
COPYRIGHT 2001 EMAP Media Ltd.
in association with The Gale Group and LookSmart. COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale
Group |
