Getting started with optimization regarding the test results

Web Performance Discuss Test Results
1

Hello everybody,

i am totally new to this so i ask for your patience…

I attached my results. Anybody can tell me where to start optimization now?

It is a joomla installation with a template i bought hosted in germany…

Thanks for any advice,
Barntl

2

I re-ran the test so I could see the waterfall… which I see as the best indicator. Sorry, I had to go across the border, but Brazil was logjammed.

  1. The size of the page is 5.5MB in total. That’s never going to be fast. As it’s image heavy, look at extensions to ‘lazy load’ those below the fold to get the page to the viewer faster. Sorry I don’t know Joomla so can’t comment directly on what’s available.

  2. Optimise these images. This will reduce the total download size

  3. You’re running Apache, so enable mod_expires and mod_deflate ( or the 2.4 equivalents of you’re at that ) with a sensible configuration to further decrease download volumes / reduce the amount to download on subsequent visits to the page.

  4. Use a CDN to deliver your static content. That way you’ll be sure to have plenty of bandwidth available to do the important stuff.

  5. TTFB is OK at 0.7s, but not brilliant. It would be good to look at tuning the infrastructure, but at the moment this is not your major concern.

3

Like GG said a fat site is always a slow site. You really need to cut the bloat, first. Above all other considerations.

Next, use .htaccess to leverage browser cache of static content. You don’t need a CDN to do this. Good article about this Here.

Actual unadulterated test results using “worst case” IE 11 shows you’re actually loading over 5.8 MB:

http://www.webpagetest.org/result/150805_K4_4S4/

You can take a whopping 2MB off that bloat just by optimizing the images listed here:

http://www.webpagetest.org/result/150805_K4_4S4/1/performance_optimization/#compress_images

And here is where you can get WPT to optimize these for you - just click for each one, where it says “Analyze JPEG”

http://www.webpagetest.org/pageimages.php?test=150805_K4_4S4&run=1&cached=0

Keep in mind - browsers still load the ENTIRE FULL SIZE of images on browsers no matter how small you make them appear, using code to scale them. Scaling them during render does NOT reduce their file size.

You also return a 404 error where your site’s favicon should be, You need to make one and upload it to the location it’s called for, in the red line on your waterfall.

4

Hi,

thank you both for your expersise and the suggestions! I will try to do so, and give you feedback afterwards.

Barntl