[LOCKED] How can I get my newly uploaded files to load quicker?

[Tony Whitehall]

How can I get my newly uploaded files to load quicker and more reliably?  

Often they take days to appear on the Net, and I keep on having to clear my browser history and caches, recreate the Dreamweaversite cache, synchronize my site files in Dreamwaverand re-uploading individual files in Dreamweaver and restarting my Macintosh computer to try to upload my files quicker.  It's frustrating.

I called my ISP.  I asked the technician there is I should get a VP server service from my ISP instead of renting 'shared hosting', but instead he He told me that my updated files are visible to others, but not to me, because of my use of framesets.  He opined that my site structure (using framesets and HTML 4 – are obsolete – and that I should redo the site from scratch in another program such as Wordpress.  

Redoing my Web site would be an enormous job which could take me three or four months of more, because I have such a huge site – with about 1,100 pages and 2,200 images and scores of Library items – which is the biggest Web site of any fine artist I've seen – and may be one of the biggest artist's Web site on the world.  

And hiring another Webmaster to recreate or update the site would unaffordable for me, so I want to be able to update my site myself.

Is there a feasible way to update my site efficiency by using Dreamweaver so I don't have to start from scratch using a totally different program such as Wix or Rapid Weaver?  (I didn't find any Net sites that advise using Wordpress for making Net sites so I've eliminated that idea.)

Someone else suggested I lease a new uploading FTP service like Host Gator or Blue Hosting while continuing to use Dreamweaver.

I want to maintain the basic look that my site has.

My Web site address is

tonymax.net

Thanks.

Tony

[BenPleysier]

He opined that my site structure (using framesets and HTML 4 – are obsolete – and that I should redo the site from scratch in another program such as Wordpress.

Tony

By @Tony Whitehall

That is the answer to your problem.

[osgood_ · Accepted solution]

I concur with your  hosting technician, using framesets in 2021 is not only obsolete but a ridiculous solution for a website containing over  1000 pages.

You need to bite the bullet and seriously consider rebuilding the website from the ground up using more modern and current  techniques, storing information in a database which will streamline the project.

Your hosting technician suggested Wordpress which would probably be a good option as it appears you have limited web development skills which wouldnt enable you to build your own cms, content management system.

There comes a time when a websites ability to function as smoothly as required because of its age and possibly newer requirements which need to be added has been reached or breached. 

If the project is not a sufficient financial generator it can be rather daunting prospect to undertake an upgrade.

[Ben M]

I agree with the other comments to move to a CMS.  With over 1,000 pages, it is a large site, but in database terms those are simply records and not individual HTML coded pages that you would be maintaining. You would have templates and the records from the database would be pulled in. This way you could update your site to be more responsive or look better on modern devices. For instance, right now your primary content container has a narrow width there is a lot of wasted space on the page and on mobile devices the page is not really usable at all.

If you are worried about budgets, it does appear that the primary purpose of your site is to sell the art work.  How is that working from the analytics you are running today?  What are your analytics telling you about your visitors today?  Maybe the first step is considering an optimization of the selling process looking at the CX of your site and then looking to solutions like Shopify/Wix ecommerce to amplify sales in order to increase budget to warrant a larger move of the site with a supporting budget.

In short, DW is not your answer here. What you need to do is consider revenue being generated from the site and whether a migration for longer-term support is warranted or if this is more of a side hobby and it can do what it does today.

[Tony Whitehall]

Thanks, Ben.

What does "CX" mean?

I don't understand what you mean about "your primary conten container has a narrow width there is a lot of wasted space on the page".

Why do you find that "on mobile devices the page is not really usable at all?"  I check my site periodically with my Iphone and I don't see any problem with it (except for the usual delay in seeing newly uploaded edits to my site, which is what I asked about here origianlly).  

I'm no longer using Google Analytics, because Google included my own hits on my Web site, and it was too much time and effort to exclude my own hits from the statistics, because my IP address kept on changing periodically without me being notified.

Tony

[Nancy OShea]

I don't imagine your current site generates much revenue because it's a not a properly crafted e-commerce site. That's a missed opportunity. 

Don't be sentimental about this. A new site will more than pay for itself in the longrun. 

Bluehost dedicated WordPress Hosting

https://www.bluehost.com/wordpress

Best WordPress Themes for Artists

https://www.wpbeginner.com/showcase/best-wordpress-themes-for-artists/

WooCommerce vs Shopify e-commerce for your WordPress site.

https://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/ecommerce-website-builders/comparisons/woocommerce-vs-shopify/

[Tony Whitehall]

Thanks, Nancy.

I'm confused by this passage on the Wordpress site:

"Next, you need to sign up for a WordPress hosting account....

We recommend using Bluehost for hosting because they are one of the largest hosting companies in the world and an official WordPress recommended hosting partner."

It states that one should get a Wordpress hosting account, yet then seems to contradict this by recommending a Bluehost account. 

Also, why wouldn't I be able to keep my current host, which is Telus?

Tony

[osgood_]

You DONT need to change your current hosting provider so long as your current server set-up allows you to run php.

Most good hosts will already have a way to install Wordpress from the websites control panel IF you have control panel access. Otherwise you can directy download the Wordpress package from the Wordpress website:

https://wordpress.org/support/article/how-to-install-wordpress/ 

and install it on your server yourself. Follow the instructions if that's the route you need to take.

Best check with your host your current 'climate' allows for setting up a database and runs the server side language php, which Wordpress requires for it to function.

[Nancy OShea]

Telus appears to be a shared hosting provider.  They might support Wordpress or not.  Honestly, I don't know anything about them.

Bluehost is one of several web hosts that offer hosting on servers optimized specifically for WordPress.  The result is faster loading web pages and a better WordPress experience for everyone including you. 

[osgood_]

Telus appears to be a shared hosting provider.  They might support Wordpress or not.  Honestly, I don't know anything about them.

Bluehost is one of several web hosts that offer hosting on servers optimized specifically for WordPress.  The result is faster loading web pages and a better WordPress experience for everyone including you. 

By @Nancy OShea

If my current webhost supported php and I had access to create a database I'd stick with that. I don't think speed is an issue, there are literally millions of Wordpress websites out there hosted on all kinds of shared and dedicated php servers.

I'd have to weight up why I might want to consider going to another hosting provider. My critera probably would be if the host doesnt have some kind of automated way that you could install Worldpress. Most cpanel and plesk dashboards will offer that as an option IF the web-hosting is any good. If a webhost doesn't provide some kind of control panel then you need to upgrade or get the hell out and stop being a cheap skate.

[Tony Whitehall]

---

@Nancy OShea wrote:

I don't imagine your current site generates much revenue because it's a not a properly crafted e-commerce site. That's a missed opportunity. 

Don't be sentimental about this. A new site will more than pay for itself in the longrun. 

---

I already have a properly crafter e-commerce site:  a shop on Etsy.

Yet I've generated far more revenue on my own Web site, which lacks a properly crafted e-commerce.

---

@Nancy OShea wrote:

I don't imagine your current site generates much revenue because it's a not a properly crafted e-commerce site. That's a missed opportunity. 

---

I've never had a lack of opportunies when running my business.  Small businesses always have plenty of opportunites.

When running a small business, missing opportunities is a necessity  Every opportunity (or seeming opportunity which might end in failure or mediocre results) comes with significant costs and investments of time, work, manpower and money. 

If I spend months redoing my Web site, I'll miss the opportunity to paint more paintings, which means my revenue from paintings won't be as high as would be if I spent that time painting.  If I spend my time painting, I'll miss the opportunity to make promotional videos and photo books.  If I make promotional videos and photo books, I'll miss the opportunity to publish art cards.  If I publish art cards, I'll miss the opportunity to go on photo excursions to seek reference material for my art.  If I go on photo shoots, I'll miss the opportunity to improve my social media presence.  Etcetera.  There are countless other opportunites for artists to improve (or try to improve) their revenue.  So lost opportunites is inevitable. 

The same principle applies to life itself.  If you work as a Web site developer in New York, you miss the opportunity to be a teacher in San Francisco.  You can only be in one place at a time, doing one thing at a time, which means you miss countless opportunities in life.  That applies to everyone.

Tony

[Tony Whitehall]

I read on the Internet that a Facebook promoter recommended small businesses should devote one week per month to work on their Facebook promotion.  That amounts to almost one-quarter of every year just devoted to Facebook promotion.  And Facebook is only one of many social Internet media.  And social Internet media are only one type of business promotion.  There are hundreds – even thousands – of different opportunities for small businesses to attempt to increase their revenues. 

Tony

[osgood_]

I don't imagine your current site generates much revenue because it's a not a properly crafted e-commerce site. That's a missed opportunity. 

Don't be sentimental about this. A new site will more than pay for itself in the longrun. 

By @Nancy OShea

I already have a properly crafter e-commerce site:  a shop on Etsy.

Yet I've generated far more revenue on my own Web site, which lacks a properly crafted e-commerce.

I don't imagine your current site generates much revenue because it's a not a properly crafted e-commerce site. That's a missed opportunity. 

By @Nancy OShea

I've never had a lack of opportunies when running my business.  Small businesses always have plenty of opportunites.

When running a small business, missing opportunities is a necessity  Every opportunity (or seeming opportunity which might end in failure or mediocre results) comes with significant costs and investments of time, work, manpower and money. 

If I spend months redoing my Web site, I'll miss the opportunity to paint more paintings, which means my revenue from paintings won't be as high as would be if I spent that time painting.  If I spend my time painting, I'll miss the opportunity to make promotional videos and photo books.  If I make promotional videos and photo books, I'll miss the opportunity to publish art cards.  If I publish art cards, I'll miss the opportunity to go on photo excursions to seek reference material for my art.  If I go on photo shoots, I'll miss the opportunity to improve my social media presence.  Etcetera.  There are countless other opportunites for artists to improve (or try to improve) their revenue.  So lost opportunites is inevitable. 

The same principle applies to life itself.  If you work as a Web site developer in New York, you miss the opportunity to be a teacher in San Francisco.  You can only be in one place at a time, doing one thing at a time, which means you miss countless opportunities in life.  That applies to everyone.

Tony

By @Tony Whitehall

You have answered you own question really - You can't have your cake and eat it. You need to make choices, stick with the website you have and continue to paint, promote it or create some time to overhaul the website...........or paint faster, sell more, charge more - then maybe you'll be able to hand off some responsibility to someone who can dedicate more time to building a more efficient solution.

Theres no magic wand. I want a better that and a better this but I cant have it unless I find the time or find the money. I think that would apply to most.

[Nancy OShea]

How can I get my newly uploaded files to load quicker and more reliably?  

A few things you can try:

• Download and use a different web browser.
• Right-click on the frameset and select Reload Frame.
• Clear your browser's cached data and viewing history.

[Tony Whitehall]

Thanks, Nancy.  

I've done those steps tens of thousands of time on my Apple computer using Safari and Chrome, and my Apple Iphone using Safari and Chrome.

In every case, instead of the current page reloading, the front page of the Web site reloads.

Tony

[Nancy OShea]

Because you're using those wretched FRAMES. 😞

[Ben M]

When you use frames that is the expected result. Let's say you have 2 frames on a page what you have is this:

page.html

  - frame1.html

  - frame2.html

If you navigate on frame2.html to frame3.html then you have:

page.html

  - frame1.html

  - frame3.html

When you hit refresh, your browser doesn't refresh frames, it refreshes the page.html since you never actually left that. So if the default setup has frame1.html and frame2.html you go back to that default setup. Refresh Frame is actually another function in the browser that only reloads that particular frame and is not the default page refresh you see in the app.

[Tony Whitehall]

Thank you, Ben.

Why did no one warn me about this serious flaw a quarter of a century ago, in 1996, when I launched my Web site?  I followed Adobe's advice and instructions at that time, to use framesets.  Was Adobe unaware of this huge flaw at that time?

And what's the best way to replace the framesets on my Web site?  Is there replace the framesets without spending several agonizing months redoing my 1,300 Web pages?

Tony

[Nancy OShea]

The guy who created FRAMES for then Netscape 2.0 admitted it was a bad decision that he often regretted.  Since the early 2000s, the use of framesets has been considered obsolete due to usability and accessibility concerns, and the feature was removed from the HTML5 code standard in 2008.  Everyone here said FRAMES were evil.  Some people listened, some didn't.

No, there's no shortcut.  You must upgrade to modern HTML5 code and get a reponsive CSS layout anyway.  So it's full speed ahead.  Scrap everything except the content and start over. 

[Tony Whitehall]

Thanks, Nancy.  

Why must I upgrade to HTML 5?  

What does "a responsive CSS layout" mean?  I've designed my Web site so images work both on large computer screens and 'phone' screens.

What do you mean by "scrap everything except for the content?"  If I keep that content, what should I change?

Tony

[BenPleysier]

This is what the web page currently looks like in a mobile. For my weary eyes, it is impossible to read.

If you add the following meta tage (which should be included for all responsive sites)

<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no">

the website looks like

This makes it ledgible, but the layout is dreadful.

I am saying this because there has been a huge change in website development and it is time that you redo the website.

You find yourself in a predicament that all of us face in life. I have employed a gardener for the maintenance of our garden. Not only does he do it much faster and better job, if I were to do that, I would be losing part of my income. When I compare what I am losing to what I am paying, I am way in front.

The same applies to you. Work out how much a web developer would cost and compare that with your loss of income.

[Tony Whitehall]

Thanks, Ben.

---

---

Finally I see what you mean.  But I disagree strongly. 

About the front page of my Web site, you wrote, "This is what the web page currently looks like in a mobile. For my weary eyes, it is impossible to read."  And about the image magnified on a section of the front page of my site you wrote:  "This makes it ledgible, but the layout is dreadful."

My traditional Web site design is far superior to the phone-specific design that you advocate, because my traditional design gives an overwiew, which is missing from the phone-specific design.  

The 'optomized' layout that you've published here only shows less than two of the images on the front page of my site, instead of all six of the images that are visible on the front page of my Web site as it currently shows.  A picture conveys as much as a thousand words.  If one agrees to correctness of that saying, your proposed design eliminates four pictures and therefore the equivalent of four thaousand words of information!  So my traditional design is far superior to your proposed inferior phone-specific design!  

With a phone the fuziness of the overview can't be overcome by stepping closer to the screen (as one would step closer to a poster on a wall) but one can simulate stepping closer by putting the index finger and thumb on the screen and moving those fingers apart while continuing to keep them touching the screen.  This finger action also simulates using a magnifying glass to enlarge a specific area of the screen that one wants to view.  And to zoom out (simulating standing back from a poster on a wall to get an overview again) one can simply touch the phone screen and move the thumb and index finger closer together!  

Try it!  It's like magic!  It's one of the great, new features of interactive design on phones!  I think you'll love it!

Also, I need to point out the obvious here:  Phones are meant to be used to look at art electronically when one is away from one's home or office desktop computer.  Obviously, they're not meant to REPLACE desktop computers!

My Apple computer screen is about 330 square inches total, whereas my Iphone screen has only about 15 inches of viewing area.  So the cellphone screen is about 22 times SMALLER than my Imac's screen viewing area!  And the phone's keyboard keys are so small and impractical that they seem to be designed for zygotes – not adult humans!  

Phones are meant to be used for tasks like phoning.  (That's why they're called PHONES!)  

Serious are viewers and shoppers don't use child-sized toys for such serious activities such as shopping for art!

I had a customer who was frustrated as you are about my Web site.  She claimed that she couldn't find basic information on the site, such as my address, phone number and a specific image.  I asked her if she was viewing the site with a phone, and, as I suspected, she said "yes" – despite the fact that she owns a laptop.  I told her the obvious advice:  that she should view the site with her laptop instead of her phone!

I never stop being blown away by people's stupidity!  

Using a phone to view an art Web site is like trying to eat a meal with utensils (a plate, bowl, cup, fork, knife and spoons) that are 22 times smaller than regular-sized utensils for eating!  

The average consumer has had accress to computers with large screens already for many years, yet nowadays it seems most people have downgraded by using child-sized phones with their ridiculously small screens for their computer use.  There's no underestimating people's stupidity!

Imagine going into an art gallery to shop for art.  The gallery has catalogs that are 22 inches area per page, and catalogs with identical content, but the page sizes are 330 inches.  Only fools would choose to view the catalogs that are 22 square inches in size instead of the 330-square inch catalogs to shop for art!  However, unfortunately, the average person is not very bright – and half the population is even less intelligent than that!

Tony

[Nancy OShea]

Clearly you've never tested your site's usability with an un-biased focus group.  If you had, you would understand why your site is a catastrophe screaming for a re-build!

You have lots of excuses for keeping the status quo which leads me to believe you don't really want feedback from knowledgeable folks with 10x more web experience than you. Instead you're content to rationalize why your site is better than brand X's.  That's certainly your prerogative.  But if you're seeking affirmation here, you've come to the wrong place.  You'll have better luck with that from your local bartender.

Goodbye Tony.  Best of luck with your future endeavors.  I hope you find what you're looking for.

[BenPleysier]

@Nancy OShea , I too think that @Tony Whitehall  is not willing to listen. As you say it is his right to go his own way and make his own decisions. But then he should not ask advice from others just to spark an argument off..

I guess that he would not even be interested in what search engines think of the site.

Or what Google thinks of the site

He probably is not interested in the fact that back in 2016, the mobile was used more frequently than desktops for web browsing.

So, like you, this is goodbye @Tony Whitehall 

[Nancy OShea]

Great minds...   See my related post.

https://community.adobe.com/t5/dreamweaver-discussions/ot-number-of-mobile-internet-users-increased-...