What is caching

What is a cache?

Imagine yourself in a fast-food restaurant where everything is ready to go. Rather than waiting for the chef to prepare each burger from scratch for each order, some are already ready to go in the cache (pronounced “cash”, like easy money). This means that when you order a burger, instead of cooking it from scratch, the waiter can simply grab an already-ready burger that matches your order exactly. It’s fast, efficient and lets you enjoy your meal much more quickly, just as a web cache lets your browser instantly retrieve the information it needs without redoing everything from scratch.

Why use caches?

Imagine you’re in a fast-food restaurant where everything is ready to go. No need to wait for the chef to prepare each burger from scratch with every order, because some are already ready to go in the cache (pronounced “cash”, like easy money).

• Lightning speed: Caches store prefabricated copies of data, web pages or query results. This means that when you request something, rather than starting from scratch, the cache instantly serves you the content. It’s like ordering a coffee “ready in 30 seconds” instead of “to prepare”. The effect is immediate: the information is there when you need it, without delay.
• Resource savings: Less time spent preparing the same things over and over again means your waiter can relax a little. Imagine a fast-food chef who has more time to fine-tune special recipes instead of juggling standard orders. It’s less stress for everyone, including the waiter and the customers, who receive their orders faster and with less waiting.
• Reduced traffic: With ready-to-use web pages and data stored locally, network traffic is reduced. This means fewer traffic jams on the digital information highway, which makes everyone happier, especially your ISP. Less congestion on the network means better loading speeds for users and a smoother online experience.

In short, caches are like fast, efficient assistants in the digital world, preparing information in advance for instant access and enhanced user experience.

The different types of caches

• Browser cache: Imagine your web browser has a little corner where it keeps the images, scripts and styles you’ve already downloaded. This saves you having to ask for them every time you visit the same site. It’s as if your browser remembers that you like your coffee sugar-free and always prepares your favorite drink before you even need to order it again. This speeds up your online browsing considerably by avoiding reloading the same elements on each visit.
• Server cache: Intelligent web servers keep a copy of the most requested pages. It’s like having a sandwich ready every time you walk into your favorite fast-food restaurant. When several people order the same dish, the server prepares a large quantity in advance to quickly serve the next orders. Similarly, server caches store copies of frequently consulted web pages so that they can be delivered instantly when they are requested again. This reduces the load on the main server and speeds up content delivery.
• CDN (Content Delivery Network) cache: Imagine your favorite content (cute cat videos, of course) stored in strategic locations around the world. CDN caches do this to ensure fast and efficient delivery of content, no matter where you are. It’s like being able to watch your cute cat videos without delay, whether you’re in the middle of the night or in the middle of the night.

In short, each type of cache plays a crucial role in accelerating web browsing, efficiently preloading and distributing content for a faster, smoother and more enjoyable user experience.

Why everyone loves cache

• Less waiting: Sites load faster thanks to caching. Images, videos and other multimedia elements are stored locally, so you don’t have to download them on every visit. This means videos don’t pause in the middle of your kitten video marathon, and web pages load instantly, allowing you to spend more time enjoying content and less time waiting.
• Energy savings: Fewer calculations needed to load the same data over and over again means less energy wasted by servers. This helps reduce the ecological footprint of data centers, which is good for the planet and good for your electricity bill.
• More smiles: Users are happier because they get what they want faster and more reliably. Servers are also more relaxed because they’re under less pressure to generate content on the fly. Everyone can concentrate on important things like watching videos of puppies sleeping, instead of worrying about slow page loads.
• Developers’ favorite answer: Developers love caching because it’s a technical subject that’s not always well understood by the general public. This gives them an edge when it comes to improving the performance of the websites they develop. They can optimize caching strategies to make sites faster and more responsive.