Learning About Web Performance

· 2 min read
performanceoptimizationweb

I’m learning about web performance, and I’m realizing my sites could be much faster.

Why Performance Matters

  • Users leave slow sites
  • Google ranks fast sites higher
  • Better user experience
  • Lower server costs

What I’m Measuring

Chrome DevTools:

  • Lighthouse scores
  • Network tab
  • Performance tab

Core Web Vitals:

  • LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): Loading performance
  • FID (First Input Delay): Interactivity
  • CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): Visual stability

Quick Wins I’m Implementing

Optimize images:

  • Use WebP format
  • Compress images
  • Lazy load images
  • Use appropriate sizes

Minify code:

  • Minify JavaScript and CSS
  • Remove unused code
  • Use production builds

Use CDN:

  • Serve static assets from CDN
  • Reduce server load
  • Faster delivery

Enable caching:

  • Cache static assets
  • Use service workers
  • Set proper cache headers

React Performance

Avoid unnecessary re-renders:

const MemoizedComponent = React.memo(MyComponent);

Use useMemo and useCallback:

const expensiveValue = useMemo(() => computeExpensiveValue(a, b), [a, b]);
const memoizedCallback = useCallback(() => doSomething(a, b), [a, b]);

Code splitting:

const LazyComponent = React.lazy(() => import('./Component'));

What I’m Learning

Measure first: Don’t optimize blindly.

Focus on bottlenecks: Fix the slowest parts first.

Balance: Perfect performance vs development time.

Progressive enhancement: Start with fast basics, add features carefully.

Current Understanding

Performance is about user experience. Fast sites feel better to use.

I’m learning to think about performance from the start, not as an afterthought.

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