 | ||||||
| ||||||
Follow these guidelines at design time to maximize the effectiveness of your channels.
Channels intended for offline use—particularly those targeted at home users—should consider the impact of bandwidth limitations. Under ideal conditions, a megabyte of content can be downloaded by a 28.8K modem in about six minutes. Actual download conditions are seldom ideal, and it often takes 10 minutes or more to download a single megabyte of content. Minimizing the size of a channel reduces download time.
How long does your content provide value to the user? How frequently must your content be updated? Synchronization scheduling should be considered in tandem with download size. Remember that the total daily download from any channel must take bandwidth limitations into account. Schedule updates for times when members of your target audience are likely to have their computers turned on.
Consider the impact of noncached resources when designing your Active Channel sites. The channel should deliver real value to the offline user. Users will likely become annoyed with an offline channel that constantly forces online connections.
Identify items that can be used offline, and those that must be used online. Consider segregating the items into discrete subchannels.
A publisher can provide a personalized channel experience by generating a custom CDF file for specific users. Generating a customized CDF file is as easy as offering a personalized home page using server-side scripting.
Did you find this topic useful? Suggestions for other topics? Write us!
© 1999 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Terms of use.
Back to top