WordPress + Gears: Promises Turbo Charged Browsing

This site recently upgraded to WordPress Version 2.6 and we’re currently testing the latest feature called “Turbo.” This is a link located at the upper right portion of your Wp-admin or Dashboard.

When you click on it, it will lead you to install a Google (yes, yes another Google product!) application named “Gears.” Gears in a nutshell is a plugin like Flash or Quicktime that “extends your browser to create a richer platform for web applications,” says Google.

It is designed for use with google or non-google websites and if you’re using Google Reader and Google Docs, then you’re already using Gears.

The match between WordPress and Gears should be a great welcome for serious bloggers because primarily it promises to turbo charge your and your reader’s browsing experience to your site! According to Matt of WordPress, “it can create local database and file storage, and run JavaScript in the background to update them without slowing down the browser.”

This means that it is now possible “to store all images and other web page components from the admin area to the user’s PC, speeding up access and reducing unnecessary web traffic,” he further says.

This is definitely one of the best improvements in WordPress since Version 2.1. Installing it was a total breeze, just follow all the steps. If you need more info and help they have it on the WordPress site.

It seems all is well but it’s less than a week since we installed it. If we discover some glitches, we’ll let you know. If you’re using it, let us know how your experience is so far! We can compare notes! The best thing about this install is it is totally compatible with Firefox 2 and 3!

Our main issue is, now that our browsing experience is turbo charged, how will it affect our own computer usage using our little notebooks. How heavy of a burden will it become size wise as our multiple blogs grow. How is the interaction between our computers and Gears at work? Will it hasten browsing experience BUT slow down our computers? Maybe it doesn’t have any effect. Maybe it has. We have yet to find.