| How
Fast is It? | What
Gets Accelerated? | How
Does it Work? | System
Requirements | Using
Propel on a Mac |Using
Propel on Windows | Additional
FAQ
| Propel Accelerator 5 delivers graphics faster
and with the best display quality! |
|
|
- Propel Accelerator 5 Advanced Image Compression delivers faster
acceleration.
- Clearer and crisper graphics so you'll see even sharper images
of the faster-delivered graphic.
- Enhanced text compression, providing smaller, faster, " lossless"
What is lossless? lossless = reconstructed exactly from the compressed
data; the same as the original compression of text and delivering
additional acceleration.
With Propel Accelerator, Web pages load up to 5 times faster.
The more you visit specific Web sites, the better the performance
you will receive.
Here is an example of tests we ran with and without Propel Accelerator:
| Popular Web Sites |
*Before
Propel ® |
*With Propel
|
How much
Faster
with Propel? |
| Ebay |
11.65 seconds |
2.97 seconds |
3.92 X faster! |
| USA Today |
32.43 seconds |
3.77 seconds |
8.60 X faster! |
| Mapquest.com |
30.56 seconds |
5.01 seconds |
6.10 X faster! |
| Monster.com |
11.74 seconds |
3.04 seconds |
3.86 X faster! |
| CNN |
11.68 seconds |
2.26 seconds |
5.17 X faster! |
| *Average time calculated based
on loading the home page. First time visit to a Web page loads
on average 2 times faster. Subsequent visits to the page load,
on average, 3 times faster. |
|
Propel Accelerator is a subscription-based service that works with
your existing Znet account, allowing you to dramatically increase
your Web surfing speed. Web pages that previously took almost 30
seconds to load can now be viewed in less than 7 seconds (on average)
and sometimes even faster.
Most Web content will be accelerated, but there are certain exceptions:
| What will be accelerated
|
What stays the same |
| All text - HTML, markup,
and javascript |
Secure pages, such as those used for online
banking and credit card forms and pages accessed over VPN. Why
this is actually a good thing. Why doesn't Propel accelerate
HTTPS?
Technically, to accelerate HTTPS it would have to be circumvented
by actively breaking the protocols in use and spoofing the desired
destination site. However, doing this would create a break in
the security of the HTTPS protocol, potentially allowing the
logging and clear text visibility of the user's private data,
such as credit card numbers, PIN codes, and bank access information.
Propel Accelerator does not accelerate HTTPS traffic because
this level of security risk would be unacceptable to our end
users. |
| Most graphics & photos
- including jpeg and gif images |
Streaming media, and audio and video
files Why not compress streaming media?
Propel does not compress streaming media because video files
and audio files delivered in the streaming format have already
been compressed to the extent possible. To attempt further compression
would degrade the streaming media past an acceptable level.
|
| Most banner ads - including
animated gif images and Macromedia Flash content |
Files downloaded outside your browser
using ftp |
| All browser-based emails |
N/A |
| POP3 and IMAP protocol emails and attachments
|
N/A |
| MP3 files, executables & other
files - when downloaded from within your Web browser
(depending on the quality of your connection). |
N/A |
Propel Accelerator is designed to provide maximum acceleration
for all Web sites and additional acceleration for the Web sites
you visit regularly. So, the more you surf, the faster your favorite
pages will load!
Specifically, Propel Accelerator speeds up the delivery of Web
pages five ways:
- Compression. Images and other graphic objects
are compressed by removing some of the image detail. This results
in dramatically smaller images that are delivered to your computer
much quicker.
You may set your own default level of graphic compression through
the Propel Icon Menu. You may also right click on any image or
Web page and select the menu item to refresh in the image or Web
page in full quality.
- Caching. Propel intelligently retains and
reuses Web pages and page elements that have previously been sent
to your desktop.
- Persistent Connections. Propel Accelerator
optimizes the communication between your modem and our network
of servers. This eliminates the time wasted re-establishing and
closing TCP/IP connections.
- Chunk Encoding with Parallel Connections. When a user begins
to download a file larger than 100KB, this feature downloads different
segments of the same file from different locations.
- Optional Content Filtering. Propel Accelerator
lets you block unsolicited content, such as pop-up ads and in-page
ads. Blocking these ads causes Web pages to load faster.
- Pop-up Windows. (Windows Only) . Propel Accelerator can
block pop-up and pop-under windows that clutter your screen
and slow down your surfing.
- In-page Ads Propel Accelerator can block most advertisements
that appear on Web pages. When an ad is blocked, it is replaced
with a light gray box on the Web page to make sure that Web
pages maintain their intended design. You can easily view
blocked ads by right clicking on the gray box. As with pop-up
blocking, you can turn this feature on and off any time you
like.
Looking for more technical detail on how Propel Accelerator works?
Please refer to our Technical
Overview . It explains the various components and how they interact
with one another. Or if you would like to see a demonstration of
Propel Accelerator in action, click
here (4 MB wmv file).
Compatibility
|
Apple Macintosh |
Microsoft Windows |
| Platforms: |
OS X 10.2 and later |
Windows 98/NT 4.0/2000/ME/XP |
| Connections: |
Any low-speed Internet connection, including
dial-up, ISDN, iDSL, DSL (under 400Kbps), and wireless
|
Any low-speed Internet connection, including
dial-up, ISDN, iDSL, DSL (under 400Kbps), and wireless
|
| ISPs: |
Almost all ISPs are compatible with Propel
Accelerator |
Almost all ISPs are compatible with Propel
Accelerator |
| Browsers: |
Internet Explorer 5.2 and Safari 1.2
|
Internet Explorer 5.0 or later, AOL 6
and 7, or Netscape 4.7 or later, MSN Explorer
See special instructions for Opera
, Mozilla
and Firefox
|
System Requirements
|
Apple Macintosh |
Microsoft Windows |
| Available Disk space: |
25 MB
(135 MB recommended) |
25 MB
(135 MB recommended) |
| Total System memory (RAM): |
128 MB
(256 MB highly recommended) |
32 MB
(64 MB highly recommended) |
|
