Google Chrome To Begin Marking Sites That Are Slow / Fast

[starshipeleven]

If this "your website is slow" was a feature you could run from one of the web developer menus it wouldn't be so bad, however if they tell your customers around the world that your website is slow by displaying it on the URL for example, they are making you and your company look bad, period, they're ruining your reputation... for free.

That's a great incentive to not make a slow site.

If there is anything most people don't understand is "speed", it has to be one of the most ambiguous and subjective things ever to measure on a computer system, Ironically this entire website is built around this premise.

Not really. Speed is relative but once you define a frame of reference it is perfectly quantifiable.

[starshipeleven]

Now if they want to show speed info or other ratings for a significant fraction of all sites, that database will need to remain on Google's servers, I guess, and lookup could not be performed locally.

Maybe. I guess it's possible to have local databases for most of that. Like all websites in your language or of your nationality.

The point is that Chrome by default does send over to Google more or less anything you do:
https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/9116376?hl=en

• Autocomplete searches and URLs: If Google is your default search engine, Chrome may send the text you type in the address bar to Google to get suggested search terms. These suggestions are based on related web searches, your browsing history and popular websites.
• Show suggestions for similar pages when a page can't be found: When you can't connect to a webpage, you can get suggestions for other pages like the one you're trying to reach. Chrome sends Google the web address of the page you're trying to reach to offer you suggestions.
• Help improve Safe Browsing: Chrome will periodically send some system information and page content to Google so we know about any threats you encounter.
• Make searches and browsing better: Help us improve Chrome and your browsing experience by allowing Google to anonymously collect data about the sites you visit. Chrome usage statistics includes information about the web pages you visit and your usage of them if "Make searches and browsing better" is turned on.
• Enhanced spell check: Use the same spell-checking technology in Chrome as Google Search. Chrome sends the text you typed to Google.

TL;dr All your data belongs to Google if you use Chrome with default settings.

[JanW]

Maybe. I guess it's possible to have local databases for most of that. Like all websites in your language or of your nationality.

TL;dr All your data belongs to Google if you use Chrome with default settings.

Thank you, that is a useful reminder!

About a local database for all websites in my language(s), I'm doubtful. I've been using internet since the Mosaic days. Back in the time, there were internet directories that tried to exhaustively catalogue all web sites in existence. The fraction of sites listed was not so bad initially, but obviously this quickly fell apart completely. I have no idea of the numbers today, but my intuition would be that such a database would tend to fill my disks and even trying to keep it synchronized might use up a large portion of my shabby "broadband" internet connection.

[Guest]

That's peanuts if compared to what they already accomplish by tailoring the search result to each individual. Doing Google searches from PCs of two different people show very different results (and world views) on many topics.

Google can already topple nations at the tip of a hat.

The point is that this is an obvious thing they can abuse if they wish so. Anyone who is aware of how bad this company is will see through this thing right away. If the average person was smarter than their doorknobs, this would be very bad press for them.

[Guest]

My (X)doubt was about him noticing a 0.2 second delay, or the browser telling him that.

Considering that you can make websites that load in less than a second, or where scripts are initialized asynchronously, it's very easy to see a 150ms delay. Even 20ms would be VERY noticeable when scrolling around on average device.

[starshipeleven]

The point is that this is an obvious thing they can abuse if they wish so.

I repeat my point. There has never been any control over what Google indexes in their databases most people use to access information in the Internet.

They have already full control of the system and we don't know how much they are influencing, they don't need a thinly disguised stick like that on top.

[Teggs]

If users from Europe are viewing North America websites, or vice versa, which incurs extra latency due to the speed of light, would Google Chrome notify the website owner to establish a new server in Europe (or vice versa in North America) closer to a sizeable subset of its users?

'Host on Google to receive a faster rating!'

[starshipeleven]

I am wondering whether it is possible that, for example, on a relatively slow computer/phone and slow Internet connection Chrome will mark 90% of sites as slow,

From the blog post, this seems to just show the result of their own analysis of the website, something similar to Google Safe Browsing.

[starshipeleven]

"Further along, we may expand this to include identifying when a page is likely to be slow for a user based on their device and network conditions."

That can be pre-computed pretty easily as well.

If a website requires the user to login, Google cannot by definition perform their own analysis of the website. If they did such an analysis, it would mean that they are leaking the username and password from Google Chrome's list of saved passwords.

I'm not sure Google ever said they want to use this to scan sites their GoogleBots would not be allowed access to, I have some doubts about how much this would be legal at all.

Because afaik many places and forums that are otherwise login-only still allow GoogleBot in to scan and index the site (of course with read-only access) https://support.google.com/webmaster...r/182072?hl=en

[WalterCool]

Looks like the big brother to me. It would give too much power at Chrome about internet.

Personally dislike.