Object-oriented programming (OOP), an important paradigm in software, is centered on “objects” — instances of classes that include data and behaviors instead of “actions.” PHP, known for server-side scripting, benefits greatly from OOP. This is because OPP supports modular and reusable code, making it easier to maintain. In turn, this facilitates better organization and scalability of large projects. Mastering OOP is important for developers working with WordPress themes, plugins, and custom solutions. In this article, we’ll outline what OOP is in PHP and the impact it has on WordPre ..read more

While all of the components of a WordPress website are important, your database is arguably key. This is where practically all of your site’s information is stored and accessed. As such, your WordPress database optimization game has to be perfect. A database that suffers from bloat and performance issues will slow down your site and hurt your search rankings. In addition, you could affect the overall User Experience (UX) too. In turn, this can impact your traffic figures, and trickle down back to your placings in search results (among other issues). For this tutorial, we’ll look at WordPress d ..read more

There are times when you’ll want to complete certain tasks without interfering with your live website. For instance, you may need to make sure you can update a theme safely or experiment with new design elements. However, performing these actions in WordPress can disrupt the User Experience (UX) and even break your site. That’s why it can be a good idea to test your WordPress website in complete privacy. To do this, you can set up a staging site or create a local environment. Then, you’re able to run speed, functionality, and security tests before applying the changes to your live site. In thi ..read more

One of the must-haves when it comes to website speed is a content delivery network (CDN). A CDN takes the load off your web server and speeds up content delivery to all site visitors. As a result, everything from your user experience to search engine potential improves! An excellent way to start learning about the subject is to activate a WordPress CDN. In this article, we’ll explain the easiest ways to add a CDN to your WordPress site. But before that, we outline the basic definition of a CDN, why you should be using one, and some extra benefits to expect. We’ll also share some speed tests so ..read more

When working on a WordPress development project with dozens or more plugins installed, it’s common to encounter performance issues. However, finding what’s causing the performance issue is not always easy. You’ve eliminated the usual suspects: hosting is adequate, there are no apparent JavaScript or PHP errors, and nothing else is amiss. You suspect that one or more of the plugins you’ve installed are to blame, but how do you figure out which plugin is causing the problem? The usual method of identifying a troublesome plugin is to deactivate plugins until you find the performance bottlene ..read more

Figuring out why WordPress is slow can be challenging. A WordPress site involves many parts, from its web server and related settings to various themes and plugins. It can also be due to unoptimized content, like images, videos, and embeds. But how can you figure out what’s causing the performance issue? It’s hard to say right away what’s the problem — there are multiple possibilities, and we’ll explore them in this post. And we won’t just stop at figuring out why your WordPress site is slow. You’ll also learn many ways to speed up a slow WordPress site. Excited? Let’s go! Why Is WordPress Slo ..read more

Even in 2021, web performance remains a problem. According to HTTP Archive, the average page requires a 2 MB download, makes more than 60 HTTP requests, and can take 18 seconds to load on a mobile device fully. Stylesheets account for 60 kB split over seven requests, so it’s rarely a top priority when attempting to address performance issues. However, CSS does have an effect, however slight it may seem. Once you’ve addressed your JavaScript, learning to optimize CSS properly should be the next priority. Let’s get to that! How CSS Affects Page Performance CSS looks innocent but can require some ..read more