mca blog

i was about to turn on IIS compression for static files this evening. but now i'm not so sure. first, the default file types that it compresses are:

• .htm/.html
• .txt

anything else must be added to the IIS metabase (a klunky experience for those who've not tried it). and most of my static files are CSS and JS - that's not even on the list. well, that's ok, i've got the cojones in my cajones[g]. i'm ready to hack the metabase.

but then i read this bit of detail in Using HTTP Compression for Faster Downloads (IIS 6.0).

When you enable HTTP compression, compressed files are given a default expiration date of Jan. 1, 1997. This expiration date prevents proxy servers from serving cached copies of compressed files to browsers that are not compression-enabled. This expiration date also forces browsers to return to the server for a fresh copy of the file when the user makes a new request instead of displaying a cached copy of the file.

whaaa???

could that be right? IIS has to *pre-expire* all compressed files to prevent problems? that seems pretty excessive.

for now, i'm leaving IIS compression turned off. at least until i have a better idea of what's really going on here.