

Data URIs for CSS Images: More Tests, More Questions - bregis
http://www.ravelrumba.com/blog/data-uris-for-css-images-more-tests-more-questions/

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storborg
This seems to be comparing data URIs to an essentially un-optimized page. It
would be more valid, I think, to compare the load time for different levels of
optimizations which are more browser-compatible: e.g. CSS sprites, using
different image domains, etc.

That said, I understand that any browser/HTTP performance testing is kind of a
pain, so thanks for this result.

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robflaherty
I agree that a comprehensive test would include the optimized scenarios that
you mentioned. In this case the intent was to show that even when comparing
two extremes - a very unoptimized page and a super-optimized page - the
results were not as disparate as we'd expect. Scenarios involving sprites and
domain sharding we'd probably expect to fall somewhere in the middle. Thanks
for your comments.

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jeremyw
There is no methodology here as to whether the test was local (~0 latency) or
simulated-real (50-200ms roundtrip latency). The latter amendment might change
the picture substantially.

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robflaherty
Hi Jeremy, I'm the author of the post. The tests were not conducted locally,
but over a real network, albeit a low-latency one. Latency is definitely a key
factor, so I'm planning to run some more tests under different network
conditions. Thanks for your feedback.

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pkulak
I had a suspition that there wouldn't be a huge benefit. HTTP has pipelining
for a reason.

