What is Prefetching?
Loading resources in advance before the user actually requests them to make navigation feel instant.
Why It Matters
Prefetching makes your app feel faster by having content ready before the user clicks a link.
Real-World Example
When hovering over a navigation link, the browser starts loading that page so it appears instantly when clicked.
“Understanding terms like Prefetching matters because it helps you have better conversations with developers and make smarter decisions about your software. You do not need to be technical. You just need to know enough to ask the right questions.”
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Related Terms
Cache
A temporary storage that keeps copies of frequently accessed data for faster retrieval
CDN
A network of servers around the world that stores copies of your content closer to users
Lazy Loading
Delaying the loading of content or code until it is actually needed.
Throttling
Slowing down requests instead of blocking them entirely when limits are approached
Latency
The time delay between a request and its response
Throughput
The amount of work your system can handle in a given time period