FeedFlow

This app is unnecessarily re-requesting feed content from websites without waiting until there's actually new content published.

Why it's a problem

The unnecessary traffic wastes a website's resources that can be used for its other site visitors.

What it means for users

Websites are likely to limit this app from accessing feed content, causing feeds to not update properly or stop working entirely.

How to fix it

The application needs to be updated to look at the Cache-Control header and wait until its max-age expires before re-requesting feed content.

This application is requesting feed content from websites but not letting them know what format it wants the content in.

Why it's a problem

When a website doesn't know what content format the application needs, it has to use more resources to try to figure out the format that will work best. When done excessively, it can result in an unnecessary increase in costs for website owners, making it much cheaper for them to just block the application.

What it means for users

Feeds will stop working or become fully inoperable when a website blocks the application due to this behavior.

How to fix it

The app should declare a common feed format it accepts using the Accept header.

This app continues making requests for feed content on a website, even after the site informs it to wait a while before making any more requests.

Why it's a problem

The excessive traffic makes a website sluggish by hogging the site's resources that can be used for other site visitors. The behavior can also cause websites to exceed their limits, making them more costly to maintain. In fact, one of the main reasons the site tells the app to slow down is usually to avoid an increase in costs.

What it means for users

Websites are likely to block this app from accessing feed content, causing feeds to stop working.

How to fix it

When a website tells this app to hold off on requesting content for a specific amount of time, it should do so.