Reload vs Refresh

October 9, 2005

When is a reload not a reload? There are two ways to reload a page in Opera, and this is a good thing, as long as you know what they are, and where to find them.

Reload

Opera’s version of “Reload is similar to the Reload in other browsers (called “Refresh” in Internet Explorer). Simply put, it will connect to the server and fetch a new copy of the page.

How to Reload

One is to press F5 or cmd + R which will attempt to reload the current page from the server.

Reload from Cache (aka “Refresh”)

This is a unique-to-Opera feature. One of Opera’s strengths is its superior cache handling (see History Preferences. It’s one of the reasons that the “BACK” button works so quickly in Opera.

This feature used to be called “Refresh display” which apparently was a little confusing to people. The feature is now “tucked away” as Tools → Advanced → Reload from cache. The new name is more specific, but perhaps a little more difficult to understand. All you need to know is that cache is the version of the page which is stored on your computer. Using “Reload from cache” will not fetch a new copy from the server, it will simply tell Opera to reload the local copy of the page. This can be helpful if there was a display problem.

  • Weirdgeek13

    I want a button next to the Reload button that says “Cache” on it… or perhaps have a little arrow on the Reload button that gives you a menu. That’d be nice. It’s a bit hard to remember “Tools > Advanced > Reload from cache”

  • trollop

    This feature is also very handy when helping someone with a web design query. You can visit their problematic page online, view the source, edit / make changes, save then reload from the cache to see the results.

    It’s a great feature.

  • http://operalover.tntluoma.com TjL (tntluoma.com)

    Weirdgeek13: I have yet to try any of these, but checkout How to make ‘Reload from cache’ more accessible? (my.opera.com)

  • http://www.hansteam.net Chris

    Isn’t the “reload from cache” option the same as the “refresh” (f5) function on Internet Explorer and FireFox. The “reload” function sounds like the “strong refresh” (shift+f5) of IE and FF. I like it better that the hard reload is the default as this is generally my intention when I reload a page, but is it really a completely original idea of Opera’s?

    ((TjL writes: I’m not an expert in IE, but I thought that F5 in IE always did a reload, not just a refresh.))

  • http://people.opera.com/rijk/opera/ Rijk van Geijtenbeek

    @Chris:

    I think ‘Refresh’ in Explorer asks the server if the file has been updated, and uses the cache if that is not the case. A hard reload in Explorer retrieves the file from the server directly, regardless.

    ‘Reload from cache’ in Opera does not contact the server at all. IE also gives you the source in a plain text editor when using View > Source, but I see no way to make the edits I could do there show in the browser.

  • http://xmpp:arioch@jabber.ru Arioch

    Pity, they hidden this so far.

    I’d name the action “Redraw page, do not reload”

  • David

    Hi;

    I’m a recent Opera convert (from Firefox, no less), and so far it’s been great, and your series has helped a lot.

    However, one thing is bugging me - when I visit pages I’ve previously visited, Opera seems to load the page from the cache, so I have to press F5 to get new content. I’ve noticed this happen on blogs where I know a comment has been made, but the page doesn’t show this. Is there an option to make sure Opera always fetches a new page from the server, rather than loading from the cache?

    Thanks.

    ((TjL writes: Set Advanced > History > Check documents to a shorter time))

  • Seba

    Hi, Iv’e got a question. I work as a software tester at an argentinian company. I use a lot the “reload from cache” option to perform security tests. Eg. I open the source code and erase or modify some validations, then I select “reload from cache” and so I can confirm wheter if the system has a server side validation or no. Now, I need to perform a similar test but I need to use Internet Explorer ¿How can I do it?, because, if i modify the source code, the browser gets the page from the server again. Thanks a lot (and excuse me for my poor english)

  • http://www.OperaFan.net OperaFan.net

    @ David:

    Go to Preferences (Alt+P hotkey) - Advanced - History. Set option “Check documents” to “Always”.

  • scott

    is there a way to make this program refresh consistently until a the page changes. I buy tickets, and I would like to refresh a page on fifa’s world cup ticket shop until a radio button appears when tickets become available. Once the radio button comes up, it would need to stop refreshing immediately. Is this possible, or do you have any recomendations?

    (TjL writes: I don’t know of a way to have it refresh until it changes. Neat idea though.)

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