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Connect joins speed with compression

Connect software automatically compresses Java applets for faster Internet transmission.

CNET News staff
Connect today joined the growing number of companies trying to speed the performance of Java applets but is using a new compression technique to do it.

Connect Quick client-server software works with standard Web browsers and servers to automatically compress all of the files in a Java applet--for example, a sound bite and GIF image--into a single ZIP file, speeding download time by up to 80 percent, the company claims. Connect Quick also boosts Java performance by downloading only new portions of an applet, instead of the entire thing, when the applet has been modified.

Asymetrix, Borland International, Microsoft, and others have all pledged to create software that also significantly speed the performance of applets but use technology known as just-in-time compilers.

The product will cost $9.95 per client and $795 per server. A free evaluation copy of the client will be available on the Internet next week during the JavaOne developer conference hosted by Sun Microsystems in San Francisco.

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