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Asked: 2026-05-20T10:39:03+00:00

I have a small APP which allows users to view information on Beers and

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I have a small APP which allows users to view information on Beers and Beers they have tried for a local Bars Beer Club.

I have 4 Views. Beer Menu, All Stats, My Stats and Settings.

Originally, I thought to pull all of the data via a web service and return xml at initial load of the app, and use it throughout.

OR…

I could just pull what I need when I need it. This would result in just pulling the data I need, which would be faster, but it would result in more requests. What would be better:

a) pull all data, store globally, build views as needed.
b) pull only data I need, when I need it. This means if they click on a beer, I would make a request for that beers info. If they clicked on 10 different beers, then that would be 10 different requests.

What is better? Or does it even matter.

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1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    yeah, I think on mobile devices these kind of decisions to matter.

    With these kind of concerns I think sometimes there is no right answer but here are a few pointers:

    Use json, not xml (if you can)

    it’s less verbose and, depending on the data, could make a difference to the speed.

    Do not block the UI thread

    This is really a general guide to all app development, in my opinion. The worst thing you can do is block the UI thread.

    Coding for a progressive UI that loads data separately will always be more fiddly than just doing a batch load, and then returning everything. But the extra work will really make your User Experience a lot more pleasurable.

    Be clever about your requests

    This kinda of carries on from the last point. I’m not saying do a million request, but do try and find a balance before less requests, and loading data as needed (which would suggest more requests).

    Try and really think about how the user is going to use your app, and see if you can do some clever pre-fetching based on what you THINK the user might need more in the certain view.

    i.e What is the most likely view to be used next? can you pre fetch the data for that?

    This last part is really the fine tuning, and will result in a lot of trial and error. But the end result will hopefully be a really great app that just feels fast, and feels right.

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