Frequently when developing web applications, we developers are lulled into false expectations of application performance while developing an app on a local machine. Network connection speed is an important and inconstant variable of application performance and depending on what you are developing, ignoring it until later stages of development can have regrettable consequences.

With the flood of compact devices like iPhones, iPads, Droids, etc, reaching the market and becoming more popular every day, it's more important than ever that as developers we simulate the user experience of these devices. Mobile devices and the cellular networks that provide them data are anything than consistent and I have frequently found myself navigating away from a website after visiting a slow-loading website on my iPhone.

One tool that I picked up from the fabulous Dave Curry years ago is called Sloppy. When using Sloppy, a developer can simulate a website's performance through a number of different connection speeds. Sloppy simulates these slow connections by throttling the flow of data to your browser.

The end result is a simulation of load times at a slower connection. I've found this tool invaluable for testing asynchronous operations in technologies liked JavaScript and Flash where application behavior is often dependent on a user's connection speed.

Check it out: Sloppy