Here's something for broadband people that will really speed Firefox up:

1 Type "about:config" into the address bar and hit return. (please not the : between "about : config" without the space)
Then Scroll down and look for the following 3 entries:

network.http.pipelining
network.http.proxy.pipelining
network.http.pipelining.maxrequests

Normally the browser will make one request to a web page at a time.
When you enable pipelining it will make several at once, which really speeds up page loading.

2. Alter the all 3 entries as follows: (double click to change the first 2)

Set "network.http.pipelining" to "true"

Set "network.http.proxy.pipelining" to "true"

Set "network.http.pipelining.maxrequests" to some number like 30.
This means it will make 30 requests at once. (default is 4)

3. Now, right-click anywhere and select New-> Integer. Name it "nglayout.initialpaint.delay" and set its value to "0".
This value is the amount of time the browser waits before it acts on information it recieves.

4. Don't forget to re-fresh the page "F5" for the changes to take effect.
(Unlike IE, FF needs to be manually re-freshed when changes are made, even forum settings)

If you're using a broadband connection you'll load pages MUCH faster now!

Thanks. Zante

Hi Phil,

you might find this an interesting read so that you can get the best out of pipelining:

http://egonitron.com/2007/05/25/the-truth-about-the-firefox-pipelining-trick/

Apparently, Firefox can make no more requests than 8 max so setting it to something like 30 is no use. .

Some users can actually find they have problems with some of the FF tweaks being spread around the internet so if you have made any changes a while back and forgot about them try going back to the defaults.

Oh OK Anne - have done nothing as yet on this - will leave it - sometimes what ain't broke don't need fixing and I've had no trouble!

Zante

Good info on that link-Thanks Anne.

Hi Anne (Liverbird)

Thanks for the link and "it is much appreciated"
I think it's always good to hear other opinions, at least that way people can decide one way or another.

Although I do feel that sometimes the likes of your article will win the day as it is displayed coming from a particular source.
Whereas mine is only coming from word-of-mouth from a forum of what other people are saying without being able to display or reveal the original source.

My only comment is to ask people to consider the date of the advice being given and is it still relevant.
As we all know, things do change over time, but old source pages of information still tend to be left lying around.
Published May 25th, 2007 in Firefox and Hacks.

**********

On a slightly different note, I also believe this is also why when we do a fresh install of our PC system things are always (or seem to be) so much faster.
Not just because of the excess debris that has been removed, but because we have as yet not modified or installed all the different tweaks that have been carried out over a period of time, some of which may now actually be counter productive to our system because of manufacturer upgrades.

It's not really that old though Phil, although I do agree that as Firefox has progressed more in the past 18 months or so the info may be a little outdated.

When I read the complete article (and the replies in comments section) it did make me think about why the defaults are set as they are, if there is a setting that could make Firefox so much faster, giving it an even better name for itself then why has it not been set differently at default


I think it must be because these tweaks or hacks as some call them may be good for some but not so good for others ..... the defaults try to set a balance for whats best for everyone and for the websites/servers.

I just think if anybody is having problems and they have made changes to those defaults then they should remember to try reverting back incase thats the cause.

The info here is not as old, I posted the link above as it gave the reasons about the settings not to be more than 8 (if of course this is indeed correct)

http://www.techradar.com/news/software/applications/8-hacks-to-make-firefox-ridiculously-fast-468317

Do read peoples comments too ...

Hope it helps

>> Do read peoples comments too ...
I do, I think it's one of the fairest ways of deciding if something that is being said is really worth it.
Although there are always some people who will say the opposite just for the hell of it, these people are usually knowns as Morrons.

The impression I get is the main reason some people are against it is because it may hog BW
Obviously if I were in the situation of being a forum provider, then maybe I certainly would not like it happening also.

I have not looked at your second link as yet, but with the first one being some 17 months old.....
In PC time that's tantamount to being a lifetime, with many upgrades installed since then.

However, just to maybe close the matter.
I have since reverted back to the old settings and have not noticed any difference, so on my PC it does not seem to have any effect, maybe I have a good ISP

Although, the last setting "can not be removed" it can only be re-set to a blank integrator therefore making it meaningless (I hope).
(3. Now, right-click anywhere and select New-> Integer. Name it "nglayout.initialpaint.delay" and set its value to "0")

the defaults try to set a balance for whats best for everyone and for the websites/servers.


That is a very good point Ann - we don't actually think about these things until someone else brings it up - which is why these forums are so helpful and as OFogey says, gives us informed info to make our choices around.

Defaults have a reason for being there - mostly I have found to go back to when one has made a hash of resetting stuff! They are a bit like your mother when she says - I told you so! Cheers, Zante

I don't want to put anybody off from having a go, there's plenty of people saying pages are loading much faster ..... I just wanted to point out that the settings may not be good for all users and can in fact have adverse effects for some depending on what websites you visit.

The main thing is to remember that you made some of these changes 6 and 7 months down the line ... when you could have problems loading sites or get errors appearing and cannot get to the bottom of it

I agree with Phils thoughts above too about fresh installs which are probably so good and fast due to the OS and our programs not having the tweaks and modifications we do over a period of time "some of which may now actually be counter productive to our system because of manufacturer upgrades"