Google SPDY aims to make web faster

Loading pages from the Internet into browsers or accessing your favorite applications may seem pretty fast now, but the folks at Google think it could be a lot faster. Designed specifically for minimizing latency, the new SPDY protocol currently undergoing testing is proving to be an awful lot faster than more familiar HTTP and will shortly break out of the lab and head for the real-world.

Chromium is the open source code on which Google's browser, Chrome, is based. Not content with developing a fast browser though, the folks behind Chromium are now looking at the way browsers and servers communicate with the aim of speeding things up a bit.

HTTP became a web standard in 1996 and has since been the transfer protocol of choice for the vast majority of surfers around the world. Developers at Google have come up with SPDY (pronounced SpeeDY), an application-layer protocol for transporting content over the web. Using Google Chrome with SPDY support, they have undertaken a limited test in lab conditions and noted significant improvements in download speeds.

Connecting to and loading up the top 25 websites enjoyed a 55 percent speed increase and while the team recognizes that there is still some way to go, initial results are encouraging. SPDY now needs real-world testing and the developers are asking for the active participation, feedback and assistance of the web community.

Netizens interested in helping can view the documentation and code before getting involved in the development via a special discussion group.

The video below shows the reasoning behind wanting to make the web faster: