Optimization
HTML Minifier Next: Zero-Config Mode, SVG Minification With SVGO, Even Faster
An update on recent improvements to the super-configurable web page minifier.
#68 · · tools, development, html, performance
Astro: How to Set Up More Powerful HTML Minification (in 31 Seconds)
On improving HTML as well as CSS, JS, and SVG minification in Astro projects.
#67 · · development, html
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXXVI
In this action-packed episode, improvements around GitHub Actions, article headings, CDNs, spellchecking, stale branches, acronym handling, Bing authentication, Eleventy performance, and site searches.
#66 · · development
Compressor.js Next
Optimizing the JavaScript image compressor and converter.
#65 · · tools, development, javascript, performance
HTML Minifier Next 5, a Quick Upgrade Guide
A checklist to work through the breaking changes of this major update.
#64 · · tools, development, html, performance
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXXV
On markup for tags, Basecoat and Tailwind, Eleventy passthroughs, quotes, loops, links, Markdown code blocks, GitHub Actions, and Markdown indentation.
#63 · · development
HTML Minifier Next: Even Faster, JavaScript Minification With SWC, SVG Minification
On making HMN better and better.
#62 · · tools, development, html, javascript, performance
HTML Minifier Next: Presets, New Config Options, Minification Sharing, and Type Definitions
A quick overview of some recent improvements to one of the oldest and most versatile HTML minifiers.
#61 · · tools, development, html, performance
Comparing HTML Minifiers
How do HTML Minifier Next, HTML Minifier Terser, htmlnano, @swc/html, minify-html, minimize, and htmlcompressor.com compare in terms of effectiveness, speed, and maintenance?
#60 · · development, html, performance
Eleventy: How to Set Up Effective HTML Minification (in 24 Seconds)
Install, add import and config, done.
#59 · · development, html
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXXIV
In this action-laden episode, link checks, file renaming, crawl settings, dependency substitutions, Eleventy performance profiling, recommendation handling, general performance optimization, and MCP servers.
#58 · · development
HTML Minifier Next: Improved Minification, More Comprehensive CLI, Clearer Docs (and a Switch to Lightning CSS)
On making it easier to minify, optimize, and speed up HTML at scale.
#57 · · tools, development, html, css, performance
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXXIII
On updating links, creating subagents, working through to-dos, blocking extremists, reviewing configs, uninstalling shell plugins, re-configuring Git, optimizing rsync, and cleaning up Node.js installs.
#56 · · development
Why and How to Write Minimal and Valid HTML, a Link Guide
On using all of HTML’s features and ensuring that HTML code is error-free—two surprisingly underused and unpopular approaches to writing HTML.
#55 · · development, html, minimalism, conformance, performance
HTML Minifier Next (a Maintained Fork of HTML Minifier)
On providing an alternative version of HTML Minifier, critical web tooling that cannot remain unmaintained.
#54 · · tools, development, html, performance
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXXII
On “internal server error” pages, Eleventy configs and passthroughs, content security policy hardening and sorting, Apple store links, and link checking and trimming.
#53 · · development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXXI
Qodana! HTML Minifier Terser! Privacy! Git! Automation! Eleventy! GitHub Actions! Cron jobs! Migrations! Maintenance has no limits.
#52 · · development
5 Ways to Reduce HTML File Size on Your Website, Step 0
The journey begins with an unpopular step.
#51 · · development, html, performance, minimalism
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXX
Everybody ♥️ website maintenance. On trimming input, updating WordPress ping services, cleaning up Eleventy architecture, reorganizing redirects, synchronizing server log configs, replacing dependencies by native Node functionality, adding minimal dark mode (HTML edition), and unfancying error pages.
#50 · · development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXIX
From cleaning up behind files and feature policies and Eleventy plugins to fun with CSS selectors and transitions to improving tables of contents to switching to ESM to testing bfcache to refactoring lists to tables.
#49 · · development
What Is HTML Optimization? What Is It Not?
Is HTML optimization as well-defined as we need it to be? A look at what’s out there and an attempt to be clearer.
#48 · · development, html, quality
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXVIII
What is it this time? Medium links, font smoothing, Eleventy templates, Bluesky handles and support, post automation, front matter quotes, and Twitter/X links. In this order.
#47 · · development
The Image Compression Challenge Results
How many projects cannot losslessly be compressed further, how much would I donate for the challenge I invited to?
#46 · · development
The Image Compression Challenge (Donating Money for Excess-Free Projects)
Here’s a frontend challenge. Run an image compression tool capable of near-losslessly compressing PNG, JPG, GIF, WebP, and AVIF images over one of your main projects. Share if nothing could be compressed. I donate money for each of such projects.
#45 · · development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXVII
On improvements involving Eleventy (3), Lightning CSS, Image Guard, early hints, ads, creator metadata, and custom/programmable search engines.
#44 · · development
Automatable Defensive Core Image Compression With Image Guard 4 (Now With No Imagemin)
The Image Guard package was just updated to move away from the unmaintained Imagemin family, and to improve code, tests, documentation, and usability. If you like to avoid unnecessary image payload, even in your repos, especially in environments where not everyone pays attention to it, this is a good update to try.
#43 · · tools, development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXVI
Optimizations related to the Google docs viewer, dependency management, English terms in German copy, Prettier, AWS, SEO bots, Eleventy, and DreamHost.
#42 · · development
The HTML History and Optimization Cheat Sheet
Compare elements and specifications, check on void elements and optional tags.
#41 · · development, html
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXV
On caching headers, capitalization, social graphics, download priorities, logical properties, Cloudflare, viewport metadata, obsolete markup, and calls to action.
#40 · · development, design
Transitive Optimization Considered—Interesting
Transitive optimization means that if we improve A to optimize B, and optimizations of B also optimize C, then improving A should also lead to an optimization of C. But now what?
#39 · · development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXIV
On AVIF tests, book prices, AI experiments, Eleventy performance, IE scripts and styles, domain registrations, site headers, and (old) document functionality that can better be handled by native HTML elements than by handmade scripts.
#38 · · development, design
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXIII
Affiliate marketing and ads and Brave Rewards. HTML elements and dotenv and Git. Spellings and designs and stuff.
#37 · · development, design
Upgrade Your HTML V
The newest part of the ebook series for HTML craftspeople and minimalists, touching on past, present, and future of the greatest document language ever specified.
#36 · · books, development, html, minimalism
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXII
Web design is a process, running our own websites is awesome, and together it means there’s always something to tweak and improve and optimize. Select things I’ve done over the last few months.
#35 · · development, design
Website Optimization Measures, Part XXI
Who hasn’t had enough of style sheet reviews, editor performance optimizations, ad removals, CTA revisions, pseudo-class refactorings, blocked AI crawlers, custom search engines, social graphics, or server log configs.
#34 · · development, design
Website Optimization Measures, Part XX
Definition issues. Aging content. Debugging. Social graphics. CTAs. DNS entries. SVGs. Filler words. PHP. There’s always something worth tending to.
#33 · · development, misc
Website Optimization Measures, Part XIX
Dull maintenance drudgery (?), this time covering dependencies, link checks, keyboard navigation, contrast, hidden UI elements, multi-language tag handling, image compression, IndieAuth, and AI crawling.
#32 · · development, design
Website Optimization Measures, Part XVIII
Random improvements as always, this time covering ARIA roles, Apache module checks, <guid> elements, CLS rules of thumb, Eleventy, block lists, site licenses, and compression settings.
#31 · · development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XVII
Encoding declarations. Conditionals. Ahrefs. ErrorDocument directives. Mastodon links. Mastodon citizenship. Bitbucket. Eleventy. Action.
#30 · · development, misc
Upgrade Your HTML IV
HTML forms the heart of the Web. The beautiful thing is, HTML is easy to learn. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to master. In the Upgrade Your HTML series, I’m taking examples of HTML, discuss these examples, and make them a little better. I’m excited to announce the fourth book of the series.
#29 · · books, development, html, minimalism
Website Optimization Measures, Part XVI
Spaces, HTTP headers, site generator exports, cite elements, variable fonts, social logos, no-break spaces, metadata—life is never boring when you run your own websites.
#28 · · development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XV
Automated lossless image compression, mini dark modes, favicon references, prerender, flat image folders, modest product promotions, compact navigation, theme colors—improvements to my own projects, maybe (or maybe not) of interest to your own.
#27 · · development
One-Dimensional Website Optimization Considered Harmful
There are many website optimization vectors—SEO, performance, accessibility, &c.—, but optimizing on only one dimension may not only be expensive, but also counter-productive. On optimizing optimizations.
#26 · · development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XIV
About link relationships, Twitterbot, dark mode, tags, addresses, social markup, color-scheme, and—FLoC.
#25 · · development, design
Website Optimization Measures, Part XIII
Lessons from running multiple websites, this time covering SVGs, HTML optimization, auto-completion, semantics tricks, code styling, favicon markup, and social images. Happy Saturday.
#24 · · development
Website Optimization Measures, Part XII
Content security policies. Promotions. Words. Tracking. Link types. Meta information. VG WORT. Social markup. Living the dream.
#23 · · development
Upgrade Your HTML III
If you care about HTML as a craft, if you consider yourself an HTML minimalist, if you believe in pushing for boundaries (and sometimes overdoing it), then this is a right book (and a right book series) for you—with 10 fresh examples from the field that get inspected and improved.
#22 · · books, development, html, minimalism
Website Optimization Measures, Part XI
Welcome to another round-up of possible website improvements, this time going from several types of link updates to table of contents CSS upgrades to CDN integration and privacy policy checks.
#21 · · development, design
Upgrade Your HTML II
If you care about HTML as a craft, if you consider yourself an HTML minimalist, if you believe in pushing for boundaries (and sometimes overdoing it), then this is a right book (and a right book series) for you—with 10 new examples from the field that get inspected and improved.
#20 · · books, development, html, minimalism
Website Optimization Measures, Part X
9 TILs that I applied to my personal projects.
#19 · · development