Need some tricks for optimizing a very slow site

[baal667]

Hi,

My blog is very slow. I tried many trick, including some CSS sprites (maybe I could do more), but it seems the mai problem comes from jquery and I am not sure what exactly is the "+" sign following my domain.

Thank you a lot!

[edited by: phranque at 3:55 am (utc) on Mar. 13, 2009]
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[baal667]

Actually, I've seen some sites that failed miserabily that test, but were faster than mine. It seems that it takes lot of time to actually connect to the database or to reach the site, while in fact

tracert http://example.net

shows everything is ok.

Any idea what can be the problem?

Thanks!

[edited by: phranque at 3:58 am (utc) on Mar. 13, 2009]
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[phranque]

welcome to WebmasterWorld [webmasterworld.com], baal667!

i would suggest you use a tool to see how long it is taking to load the components on your page.
the following WebmasterWorld post describes the usage of Yslow! which would be helpful in this case:
Speeding Up Your Site - best practices for the front end [webmasterworld.com]

[JS_Harris]

two quick comments.

#1 - log out of the admin panel, clear your cookies and clear your cache. You want to browse around the site like a regular visitor because sometimes being logged in means different things are happening. It might only be slow to you.

#2 - if it's still slow have someone look over the source code to see if they can spot any problems or source code bloat. Sometimes it's something simple like your site waiting for an external server to respond, perhaps a widget or 3rd party service.

[baal667]

Thanks for the replies. I tested my site on [a webmaster tools site] and it turns out my host's speed is inconsistent. Sometimes I get a quick loading in 3-4 seconds, and sometimes it takes 15 seconds.

[edited by: phranque at 10:18 pm (utc) on Mar. 23, 2009]
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