Blog - KeyCDN

KeyCDN's WordPress Plugins Are Now on GitHub

KeyCDN loves giving back to the web performance community which is why we created three WordPress plugins that are directly related to making websites faster - CDN Enabler, Cache Enabler, and Optimus. Each of these plugins serves a different purpose however they all share the common goal of making websites perform better. We've gotten great response and feedback from our users since the launch of each plugin and now we're happy to announce that each plugin is publicly available on GitHub.

September 28, 2017 Read more

What Is a Headless CMS and Should You Be Using One?

More than 70 percent of North American companies either use or plan to use a content management system in some capacity. Unfortunately, traditional CMS tools provide little flexibility when it comes to integrating new delivery formats. Consequently, introducing mobile or IoT functionality to your application architecture can present challenges, which is why more developers are choosing to go headless. This post will go over everything you need to know about what a headless CMS is, and when you should consider using one.

September 21, 2017 Read more

Perfect Forward Secrecy - Why You Should Be Using It

Perfect forward secrecy, which is sometimes just referred to as forward secrecy, is a method of ensuring that all transactions sent over the Internet are secure. This method of encryption prevents a hacker from being able to access data from a group of transactions even if they're able to hack the encryption for a single communication sent over the web. By creating a unique session key for each transaction instead of relying on sessions to keep connections open, hackers can't gain access to data from more than a single communication between a server and a user.

September 14, 2017 Read more

20 Best Practices for Improving JavaScript Performance

JavaScript is an integral part of practically every webpage, mobile app and web-based software. While JavaScript's client side scripting capabilities can make applications more dynamic and engaging, it also introduces the possibility of inefficiencies by relying on the user's own browser and device. Consequently, poorly written JavaScript can make it difficult to ensure a consistent experience for all users. This guide will explore the causes of JavaScript performance issues and provide a list of best practices for optimizing JavaScript code.

August 31, 2017 Read more

Functional Programming - What Is It and Why Does It Matter?

While the concept has been around for quite some time, functional programming finally came from out of obscurity to the forefront of the JavaScript community a few years ago. Developers of large applications now regularly incorporate its principles into their codebase. If you're new to functional programming, this guide will get you up to speed. What is functional programming? Functional programming (FP) is a programming paradigm for developing software using functions.

August 24, 2017 Read more

Absolute vs Relative Path - Which Should You Be Using?

Creating and keeping up with web links can be a challenge, especially if you don't understand the difference between absolute and relative paths. These conflicting approaches to connecting webpages can have a significant impact on a website's performance and SEO value. This guide will explain the two types of links and help you determine the right path for any situation. Relative path vs absolute path: What do they mean? Absolute paths contain a complete URL, which includes a protocol, the website's domain name and possibly a specific file, subfolder, or page name.

August 17, 2017 Read more

Continuous Integration Tools - Leading Solutions

Just a little more than a decade ago, development cycles were very different than they are today. Developers worked more independently, and they were often responsible for their own builds. Integration of the end product's various features didn't happen until the end of the cycle. In hindsight, that sounds counter-intuitive considering all that can go wrong during the integration process. Such unforeseen challenges frequently created chaos for production schedules. It makes more sense for developers working together on one project to continuously integrate their code into a shared repository, and then address issues as they arise.

August 10, 2017 Read more

Understanding Network Bandwidth vs Latency

The terms "network bandwidth" and "network latency" are sometimes used interchangeably, but they actually describe two separate concepts. Comprehending the difference between them is key to understanding frontend web performance. This guide explains how to take optimal advantage of network bandwidth while reducing latency so that you can deliver a fast and flawless user experience. We'll walk you through how to maximize your network's bandwidth while minimizing latency to achieve the best possible user experience (UX).

August 3, 2017 Read more

Speed Index Explained - Another Way to Measure Web Performance

Given that users' perceptions of time are ever changing, how do we know what "fast" means in terms of web performance? When we talk about speed, there are actually dozens of metrics to consider. For instances, start render, first paint and first meaningful paint are all terms used to describe how fast a page loads, but they all technically measure different things. Over the past half-decade, all of the factors that influence a web user's perceived performance and actual performance have been collapsed under the concept of speed index.

July 27, 2017 Read more

Docker Tutorial - Getting Started with Containers

Working on web projects with a team often presents technical challenges, especially when team members use their own personal computers that run different hardware and operating systems. If you're constantly testing an app on different devices, it's difficult to ensure that everyone is having a consistent experience. Virtual machines can help us get around these issues, but there is a lightweight solution that most developers prefer: Docker containers. What is Docker?

July 20, 2017 Read more