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Building a more power-efficient browser

blogs.windows.com

61–70 of 105 posts

Re: Building a more power-efficient browser

#61

Some interesting optimizations in here, but I'm curious about this one in particular: > With the Anniversary Update, Microsoft Edge only executes background JavaScript timers once per second in background tabs. More importantly, these timers are coalesced with other work happening across Windows. Microsoft Edge doesn’t wake up the hardware to perform work. Instead we tag along with other work happening across the sys…

In Safari, which slows background JavaScript down or stops it altogether, music stops playing occasionally on Soundcloud when a song ends. The only option to prevent this is to make the Soundcloud tab the sole tab in the browser window. The window can be in the background but the tab is not treated as background tab because it is the active tab in the window.

I personally would be happy if all background tabs would stop completely if they don't have focus for a configured amount of time, and don't have a network connection currently in use.

To keep a tab active pin it, those tabs will be immune from that.

And not for power consumption but simply for browser speed!

Re: Building a more power-efficient browser

#62
post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a hint to users that reading mode may provide a better experience. When we introduced it, reading mode usage went up; without the (very subtle) animation, users weren't aware when the feature would be useful.

Of course usage will go up when you animate it. That's like saying people click the Ok button more when you put it on a popup dialogue. The question is: do people keep using it when you don't animate it. Were they using it because it was animated, or because it's something they like to use?

Are you suggesting they're only clicking it because it shiny?

If they didn't like it they'd stop using it after the first click and the numbers wouldn't appear to go up more than a single little bump. Clearly it helps people to have that cue there.

Re: Building a more power-efficient browser

#63
post #2

That's pretty nice but the lack of plugins means I can't have LastPass/1Password, uBlock, etc, which kills it for me.

Extensions are coming with the anniversary update in a month or so, I'm excited!

Any idea what the development model is for Edge extensions? Would love to see them supporting the WebExtensions API [1] rather than roll out something proprietary.

[1] https://wiki.mozilla.org/WebExtensions

Re: Building a more power-efficient browser

#65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Extensions are coming with the anniversary update in a month or so, I'm excited!

Any idea what the development model is for Edge extensions? Would love to see them supporting the WebExtensions API [1] rather than roll out something proprietary. [1] https://wiki.mozilla.org/WebExtensions

They're going to be mostly chrome-style, with a tool to convert chrome extensions.

Re: Building a more power-efficient browser

#66
post #19

re: The reading mode button animation batery use improved Who needs the button animation at all? I like them not moving, every movement of something that's always on the same place is distracting. It's stunning on what they spend the energy of the management and the programmers, not only of the CPU's and GPU's of all of us. "We replaced the traditional XAML animation with a timed GPU transform, and now animate the co…

It's a hint to users that reading mode may provide a better experience. When we introduced it, reading mode usage went up; without the (very subtle) animation, users weren't aware when the feature would be useful.

The real problem here is that, as with a lot of other aspects of UIs today, most of your users probably have no idea what that icon or indeed a lot of the others is supposed to mean. If it was just plainly marked "Reading Mode", you might get the usage increase without wasting countless hours designing an animation and having it, in turn, waste the energy of your user's machines and then having to spend even more time and energy "optimising" that animation.

Stop making UIs consisting entirely of vague mystery-meat-navigation-buttons-some-that-don't-even-look-like-buttons and none of these problems of discoverability would exist.

Re: Building a more power-efficient browser

#67
post #62
post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course usage will go up when you animate it. That's like saying people click the Ok button more when you put it on a popup dialogue. The question is: do people keep using it when you don't animate it. Were they using it because it was animated, or because it's something they like to use?

Are you suggesting they're only clicking it because it shiny? If they didn't like it they'd stop using it after the first click and the numbers wouldn't appear to go up more than a single little bump. Clearly it helps people to have that cue there.

Well, I only clicked it because it was shiny, and I'm nobody special.

Re: Building a more power-efficient browser

#68
post #6

That's odd, a month ago I read a statement from Opera that they had the most power efficient browser. Which is the most powerefficient? http://www.windowscentral.com/opera-adds-power-saving-mode-i...

Trying to get a full days use out of my laptop I did some tests last week, Edge with adblock beats Opera with battery saver + adblock.

Re: Building a more power-efficient browser

#69
post #57

Honestly I'd be happy if they could stop Windows 10 from turning my laptop into a hair dryer randomly while it is otherwise entirely idle. The thing is sitting there doing nothing, suddenly the fan will start roaring and the CPU utilization spikes.

Seriously why on Earth does this happen? Even if Edge ends up being more power-efficient the rest of the OS (Windows 10) is going to ensure that I will get no more than 3 hours of battery life on my laptop.
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