Post by Stefan Wintermeyer · 2026-09-02
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# Low-bandwidth mode

vutuv is already fast. I want to go one step further, because not everybody has
  fiber at home or Starlink on the roof: members on a slow or metered line now
  have a switch of their own. You find it under Settings → Appearance →
  Low-bandwidth mode (https://vutuv.de/settings/bandwidth), or as a box on the
  sign-up form. It is off by default and can be switched off again at any time.

**Smaller pictures.** Post photos, pictures from other networks, link
  screenshots and profile covers come in a lite version: about the size they are
  shown at, in a stronger compression. Measured on vutuv.de, a post photo is 12
  kB instead of 44 kB, a link screenshot 3 kB instead of 13 kB, a cover 8 kB
  instead of 34 kB. Avatars stay as they are (for now); they are under 2 kB
  each.

**Full quality on request.** Every lite picture carries a small HD control in
  its corner. One tap loads the full version in place, and it stays loaded while
  the page updates. The lightbox opens a photo at 1,600 px instead of 2,560 px.

**A plain composer.** Posts and messages are written in a plain Markdown box.
  The formatting editor is 155 kB of JavaScript, and in this mode it is never
  sent. What you publish looks the same to everyone.

**No preview while a picture is being checked.** A photo that is still going
  through our image check shows a grey tile with a note instead of the pixelated
  preview, which would cost as much as the lite picture itself.

**Pages compressed harder.** Pages are compressed with brotli at level 6 for
  everyone; in low-bandwidth mode the server uses level 10. A profile page is 24
  kB instead of 27 kB.

While working on this new feature, I was able to enhance the web performance of
  the standard version of vutuv as well. Small improvements add up.

Tags: WebPerf, vutuv

Likes: 1 · Reposts: 0 · Bookmarks: 0

Liked by: Friedhelm Brust

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vutuv agent document · type: post · schema_version: 3
generated_at: 2026-09-03T07:47:13Z
canonical:
  https://vutuv.de/wintermeyer/posts/01a063ec-32dd-7ef5-ae4b-ea65a70f0c6b