Author: paul
Description:
The above link in the URL field on this form refers to the article on my blog where I mention my thoughts regarding this proposal; you don't need to read it, it simply gives more background on why I am proposing this.
I would like to recommend the following change to allow a page during a macro call or on the page to be advised the user is on a low-bandwidth connection. I recommend a checkbox be added either to 'files' or to 'misc' of the form 'Allow pages to be aware I am on a slow connection' and when checking this box it turns on a value that can be read as one of the parameters which can be read by {{#if}} or is a variable that is non-blank if the checkbox is set, and thus can be tested for blank/nonblank.
An alternative would be a checkbox with an option 'don't show many images or maps' and returning a similar variable but this sort of question may be unclear as to why it is necessary.
Another alternative would be to have a selector with multiple values, e.g. "1 to 10" or "1 to 4" (neither of which might be clear) or "Dialup under 56K / 56K dialup / ISDN / DSL or Cable Modem " or something, that tells level of bandwidth they normally have available, and the page could check for that, however, again, that may not be completely clear, and if it isn't easy to parse for someone writing markup might not use the feature.
The reason for this is with reference to pages such as http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_counties_in_Virginia the page contains a series of macro calls, one for each county in the commonwealth, in which it refers to a map showing that county's location in the state. This is also being done for several other states, and is also done in other areas where there are several detail pictures or maps being shown that, if the person can warn the page that their connection really isn't that fast, the page could, if it detects the slow connection flag, skip rendering the images and thus reduce the amount of time needed to render the page. (I shudder to think what would happen if someone loads the page for Texas and it has to make 250 database dips because that page has been rendered with a map for every county in the state! The user may still be waiting 1/2 an hour later for the page to finish rendering!)
This is why I am recommending creation of a checkbox option on the user's preferences page and a conversion of that checkbox into something that can be tested by wiki markup to allow it to render a still functional but less bandwidth-intensive page.
Version: unspecified
Severity: enhancement
URL: http://www.paul-robinson.us/index.php?blog=7&title=wikipedia_low_bandwidth