ASP.NET hourglass on loading page

Question

On my new job there is a web-application written in Visual Basic .NET with usage of ASP.NET Webforms framework for producing and rendering of webpages. It runs on a Windows server and requires Microsoft IIS web-server as an application host. The project is developed with Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 as a development environment and uses Intersystems Cache database. The application has a layered architecture (Interface -, Business -, Data access layer).

We use Firefox (78.1.0.esr(64-bit) as browser (internal policy).

Users complain that they don't know when a page is loading / request is being processed. Apparently in the past Firefox visualized an hourglass when the page was loading.

What is the easiest way to visualize an hourglass for each request (independent of the page)? It's a very large application.

Answer 1

For postbacks, you could use the asp:UpdateProgress control.

See: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/api/system.web.ui.updateprogress?view=netframework-4.8

It allow you to display anything you want during the time the postback is being processed. I assume you could also use a css-class which turns your pointer into a hourglass if you wanted..

Answer 2

Well, as noted you don't mention any performance issues for what task?

And the browser display (or not) is a HUGE MASSIVE different issue here.

Browsers even Edge, or Firefox, and in fact all browsers I know of STILL display a loading animation. and that includes FireFox.

Edge browser: (based on Chrome engine now)

And FireFox

I am not aware of any changes in this area. However, it is BEYOND LAUGHABLE that some comments here suggest using ajax or some such!!! - I can provide some links to truck driving school, or maybe fast food training, as that is a laughable and gut busting suggestion here.

In fact? Introduction of ajax calls WILL FOR SURE remove any browser "waiting" or circle delay animated icon that MOST ALL browsers have when a page is loading.

Next up: Performance:

Well, does a page on the web site without any data load fast? In other words, do you have (or can you add a test page to the site - "hello world" on the page.

does that page load fast, or do all pages load slow. Or do pages with data operations and pages that pull data are slow?

And did the site run fast at one time, and is now with more data is it running slow? Or was it always slow? YOU REALLY need to answer the above questions.

Since you using a post-sql (or non sql database), then data in that system is actually saved in a format VERY similar to JSON, or XML. Just that the multi-value format used in that Cache database was invented in 1970, but that database uses strings for the data store.

In effect like say using google, or even SharePoint? You can have millions and millions of documents. Such computers even with low processor and low memory can easy say run a motor vehicles department for a whole country - 100 million people say.

So what they do AMAZING:

If you need to pull a patient record, or say a customer invoice? Such systems even with say 1 billion records can pull that WHOLE invoice out of the data base with ONE disk operation and seek. They are blistering fast WHEN retrieving what amounts to a master/child record compared to a sql system.

However, while those systems can say represent a whole invoice with one "string" (just like you can with XML or JSON?). What such systems do VERY poorly is "row" processing. So, get a record, modify that record, save it back? Fantastic performance.

However, row processing, or say using sql statements to update a lot of rows? That system is REALLY slow. And in fact, things are even worse since the ODBC drivers are in fact translating sql statements into "no sql, and into the string base database system).

So, I would ensure the data files are sized correctly. So, if that system used to run fast, but now is slow? The data files (their base size) need to be re-sized, and thus the huge mass of what we call "linked frames" will be reduced, and performance should increase huge. But you have to check the Cache database. (assuming that you have a few years of experience with that database system (so years of experience with a multi-value database is a basic requirement here).

So, do all web pages load slow - even ones without data? Then the can't be the database.

Or, is this occurring for some database pages that involve say updates?

And did the developers use the "data cube" like data objects, or do they use the SQL (odbc) translator for dealing with the database?

And was the system fast at one time? or was it always slow.

And do pages without much (or any) database operations run fast).

And VERY imporant: Does the site run fast with say 5 users, but then run slow with 50 users? (but then again, I can't imagine you not asked these super simple questions that anyone would when attempting to evaluate performance). I mean, you can have say "average" doctors, but when you have a special medical mystery, then you need a Dr. House here - the best of the best). Same goes with computers. It is possible you are making the assumption that the original developers of the software and system were drunken unemployed rodeo clowns, but then again, maybe they did a REALLY good job, and the database or software been out grown due to server high loads during peak times. But then again, perhaps worse that these "basic" questions about performance have not yet been asked by you?

Out of one of our computing science classes, there was only about 2-3 out of a class of about 80 that would "naturally" write the fastest running code. (these days, unfortantly tracking things like code execution time and other metrics is often not even considered anymore, but it should be). Same goes for say formula 1 racing. You can take two teams, each with a 400 million dollar budget, but one team BLOWS AWAY the competition, and yet all the teams hire the best talent money can buy. So, hiring some developers to build software? Sure, lots of developers. Hiring developers with top notch performance in mind? Well, then that's when you seek out the big guns, the guru's - the top talent.

and even other basic questions such as : Does the system run well on the test or development box? Did the system run well at one time, but is not slower over time? Or was it always slow? (and then what prompted this issue and idea that performance now needs to be fixed and addressed compared to no one doing anything 5 years ago?).

And when the site was becoming slow, were the developers of the site contacted? (or why, or why not?).

But, talking about a cube like "no-sql" database? And THEN ALSO introduction of a simple browser question of which all have that "animation" icon? That is two VERY different questions here. Have to really wonder how both of this issues could be mixed up and introduced to the same post and question? (yikes!!!!).

All current browsers I am aware of do have a "wait" type of animation. But such animation have VERY little to do with application and database performance optimizing. Toss in that you using a so called post-relational, or so called multi-value database, then you introducing an area of expertise that most posters here likely don't have. (so you getting silly suggestions about ajax and the like).

I have 10+ years of experience on those multi-value databases, and as noted, they are not fast at row processing, but pulling, update and save of a record? Then such systems can easy beat sql based systems performance wise. So, the fine art of performance? It is without question a question and process for the "top dogs" talent wise in our industry when attempting to deal with performance.

So, was the system fast at one time, and now is it slow? Are all pages - even those without data from databased slow? Or are only some pages with data operations slow? Are they using Cache data objects, or are they using the database provider and sql?

so, what type of data provider(s) are being used in this application?