fast user input speed

[Joerib <jo...@yahoo.com>]

Hello,
 
We are
developping an application using Wicket 1.4. The application is a rewrite of an
old Delphi program.  The users have a special requirement that all input
data must be done via the right hand keypad.  Input data is mostly numeric
data and field submission is done with the right keypad “ENTER” key or the
right keypad “+” sign.
 
We solved
this by capturing the “ENTER” and “+” sign key code on the key down event and
triggered an Ajax request.  The reasons why were doing this via Ajax
events and not plain JavaScript is because the next focus field is dependent on
the entered data.  This cannot be determent in advance.  Between
field submissions there is also business logic validation happening.
 
This was
working perfectly until the users were getting to know the application better
and their input speed was increasing.  After a while the application
couldn’t follow their input speed and the users were not happy with the
result.  Using the Delphi program they didn’t have this “input lag”.
 
I would
like to hear some ideas on how you guys made the user experience for a web
application as close to a fat client application?  The biggest complaint
they have is when they type the “enter” key a few times the application only
responds to the first event.  
 
Regards,
Joeri


      

Re: fast user input speed

[Igor Vaynberg <ig...@gmail.com>]

this is not your typical usecase for a web application :) web
applications are limited by the round trip to the server - which is
limited by how fast your server is and what the user's connection
speed is.

i would try to profile your application and see if you can make it
faster, but i dont think you can do anything about a super fast enter
key double hit, the browser will lose the second key event while
trying to process the first.

i think you may be better off using something like gwt and pushing as
much of your business logic into the client as you can.

-igor

On Thu, Jun 24, 2010 at 12:30 PM, Joerib <jo...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> Hello,
>
> We are
> developping an application using Wicket 1.4. The application is a rewrite of an
> old Delphi program.  The users have a special requirement that all input
> data must be done via the right hand keypad.  Input data is mostly numeric
> data and field submission is done with the right keypad “ENTER” key or the
> right keypad “+” sign.
>
> We solved
> this by capturing the “ENTER” and “+” sign key code on the key down event and
> triggered an Ajax request.  The reasons why were doing this via Ajax
> events and not plain JavaScript is because the next focus field is dependent on
> the entered data.  This cannot be determent in advance.  Between
> field submissions there is also business logic validation happening.
>
> This was
> working perfectly until the users were getting to know the application better
> and their input speed was increasing.  After a while the application
> couldn’t follow their input speed and the users were not happy with the
> result.  Using the Delphi program they didn’t have this “input lag”.
>
> I would
> like to hear some ideas on how you guys made the user experience for a web
> application as close to a fat client application?  The biggest complaint
> they have is when they type the “enter” key a few times the application only
> responds to the first event.
>
> Regards,
> Joeri
>
>
>

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