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Network-Related Timeouts
Something that constantly baffles me about Windows XP's networking is the ridiculously long timeouts before an attempt to connect is considered as having failed. Why, in this modern age of relatively high-speed networks, are Microsoft still assuming that 30 seconds is a resonable time to expect a networked computer to respond in? In how many cases is this length of time actually going to produce a result anyway? I think I would be right in assuming that if a successful connection hasn't been established within 5 or 10 seconds, its not going to happen in 30, and if it is its taking way too long. It seems to me like Microsoft is catering to people who are willing to wait until its absolutely certain that no connection can be made - a group of people who I'm sure are in the minority.
However, the timeouts wouldn't be such a big problem if they didn't directly interrupt my usage of the computer. The real issue here is not so much the length of the timeouts as the way that this delay actually freezes the user unterface. Not only is the user forced to wait 30 seconds, but they must wait 30 seconds while the UI appears to have completely locked up, even if XP is simply querying for information about a network shortcut or file. I have found myself trapped in "My Network Places" for 30 seconds at a time, staring at a frozen screen, waiting for long-dead shortcuts to be queried. Why on earth did Microsoft allow a network-based activity - an operation highly prone to failure - to completely freeze up the interface while it executes? One of the most critical principles of interface design is to keep the user informed. Never let the interface freeze, particularly when its freezing during a particularly common activity.
I've seen worse: the latest driver software for a Bluetooth dongle I bought locked up so commonly that I had to revert to using the original drivers that came with the package. In an attempt to make the interface more user-friendly, the company had integrated access to all Bluetooth features into Windows Explorer. Great! But whenever I selected any of the icons, I suddenly found myself waiting for minutes at a time for the software to query the dongle.
Delays of even a few seconds after performing what should be considered a non-committing action (single left-clicking an icon) can be painfully jarring to the users experience of your software. Modern software and hardware is fast enough that - in general - we should not be waiting for over 15 seconds for a non-critical device to respond before getting back to the user about whats happening.
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