A starting point for many people when considering the performance of new applications or hardware is an industry benchmark. The leading independent benchmark organizations have already begun to provide web-specific benchmarks. Sources that might have useful information for you include:

Standard rules for all benchmarks apply when looking at web benchmarks. They are representative of likely performance for that given mix of workloads, but are unlikely to be reliably applicable to your particular situation. If using benchmark figures, try to understand the process used, the nature of the workload and the configuration flexibility allowed. Be careful about what you believe and use! Independent performance experts will often save you time and trouble by sorting out the wheat from the chaff and providing you with the key information you really need.

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