19 April 2020

Site Performance Issues

By Alexa

You might have noticed that the website has quite some performance issues. It’s mainly the first load which hold off the website quite a lot and that even depends on the browser used.

For instance on Google Chrome the website loads pretty fast, but with the Opera browser (which also uses the Chromium base) it’s slow like hell. With that I was kind of fed up with the big logo at the top and the somewhat forced load of 10 blog posts which I wasn’t able to change for some weird reason.

New Layout

It is always a challenge to find something you like and with WordPress layouts is exactly the same. I started with the free WordPress ones but I didn’t like them a bit 😔

And I don’t know how, but all of a sudden I had selected a ‘freemium‘ layout. I tried to change to the free WordPress layouts again and stumbled upon the one pictured above. I liked that layout a lot and installed it, only to find out that this was one of those freemium layouts as well.

Better Performance

None the less, I gave this freemium layout a try and liked it quite a lot. It even allowed me to use features like preview of a blog post and capping the number of posts on a page 😊

The most important thing though is the enhanced performance this layout gives. Though the performance is still in the red, it is already double of the current layout (hi hi hi – this will be quite funny when reading after I change the layout 🤣).
Adding extra performance features like ditching those .PNG images and replacing them for .JPG, or even use a .WEPB compatible plugin for WordPress will most likely get the performance into the orange range.

Plugin Payment Problems

As said, the upcoming layout is a freemium one and it will cost me $40, I think it’s worth the payment. But this is not be the only plugin I’m using which costs money. I am using two more plugins requiring payment and have an additional two in mind with the same problem.

The first one I use is Elementor, the editor I am currently using, giving me a lot of extra features which WordPress doesn’t. Sadly though this one uses a subscription based freemium model which costs $50 per year (seriously? 🤔) and it is certainly not something I will pay.

The second freemium plugin is Social Media and Share Icons which allows you to follow me on different social media. This is a one time purchase of $30, giving a host of additional options making the purchase worth while.
One of the most important options will be (and here it comes again…) performance. The bought version also allows me to use different or even custom made icons, more platforms better placement of the icons.

It Adds Up

All those ‘small’ freemium prices do add up to a big one quickly. Only the layout and social icon ones are $80 and the other two I am thinking about will be about the same.

Not to mention the .lgbt domain i am using. This is one of those special top domains which are pretty expensive. I pay a €55 a year for it 😲, but for a blog like this I think it’s worth it.

It's my Blog

It is very easy to ask my readers for donations to purchase these additions for the blog, but it’s my blog! I wanted to share my experience of my transition and I am responsible for all costs that come with it.