RH11 Responsive HTML5 Rendering Delays?

Question

I am using a trial of RH11 to investigate upgrading from RH9. We currently produce WebHelp but we're also thinking about trying Responsive HTML5 output since our application runs in IE and also Safari on iPad (the Webhelp on iPad, even that produced in RH11, has some issues with parts of the search tab being cut off from display...thus the thought to try Responsive ouput).
In the trial output of Responsive HTML5 used in IE, we experience delays anywhere from 3 to 5 sec up to 20 sec sometimes (usually less than 10 sec) as we use the interface. For example, when help first opens up and begins to display its content and interface components, there can be pauses until the content is finally displayed in the browser. Another noticeable delay time is anytime we happen to adjust our browser size on our desktops -- for example, maximize or downsize browser to fill up various amounts of the desktop screen so that we can see how the help layout adjusts itself given the amount of browser space available. This is in IE10 and 11. I did not expect such overhead or delays when trying out that help format. Webhelp ran from the same server doesn't have the delays.
Has anyone else experienced these Responsive HTML5 delays? If so, have you found any work arounds or settings in your help project or browsers that either contributed to the rendering delays or helped reduce the delays? I assume all the scripts that run behind the scenes are a factor. The delays occurred whether I used one of the standard screen layouts for the help or had made some adjustments to the layouts such as to its color scheme. With the delays we're experiencing now, the Responsive HTML5 help isn't as appealing an option as I had hoped.
Karen

Answer 1

I grabbed a few screens of a report today showing durations. In this session, I opened help, waited for it to load, then began using the contents, and ended with a search on a single word. Yes, the longest durations were the HTTP requests (for images and for toc). Most of the delays I noticed seemed related to TofC, including some where I would click on a book to expand it and nothing happened, so I needed to click again (maybe my first click was before the page was done loading and I hadn't realized it, jumping the gun before contents tab was ready to use?). The other screens show the bulk of the rest of the report, which were for script evaulations and then painting/rendering.
Regarding bandwith -- might be the case for me, since I work remotely and am accessing this all via our VPN. But there is a person in our office who ran the help for me while in the office and also was seeing delays (the help in this case resides in the folders of an app that is housed on internal server). My next step is going to be putting the help on our web server and see if the delays still occur there.
Something to note is that when I run this help locally from C drive, there are also some delays -- most noticeably within the table of contents (for example, click on an item such as a book or sub-book and nothing happens so I wait a second or two and click again and it responds).
One final question in case it's relevant -- this help was produced off an old RH9 webhelp project that I opened/upgraded in the RH11 trial. Could that be a factor? Should I try a fresh project with fresh topics and TofC?
Appreciate the time you are taking to share our thoughts on this matter,
Karen