Harry Roberts‘ Front-end Performance

The workshop

Performance is big business. Every case study out there tells us that users hate slow experiences, and that faster experiences generate more conversions: more conversions means more money. But, in the age of diversifying audiences on a variety of unknown connections, the mobile boom meaning more people on sub-standard networks, and the web’s serious bloat problem, general performance experiences are pretty bad.

In this workshop, we’ll take an in-depth look at

• how the network really works, and how to design around it;
• how to keep websites fast whilst keeping clients and stakeholders happy;
• how to optimise our assets for faster delivery;
• how to trick the browser into delivering assets with different priorities;
• how to measure and profile performance wins and losses; - a whole host of tips, tricks, and techniques to help us deliver the same experiences in record times;
• a bunch of fascinating little factoids and trivia which help shine a light on what’s really going on under the hood;
• lots of naughty little micro-optimisations, just for fun;
• and a lot, lot more.

This workshop is targeted at intermediate to advanced front-end developers, web designers, and software engineers, or anybody who writes code. There will be resources and case studies for you to take back to non-technical stakeholders to help convince them of the power of performance.

The day

The workshop will take place in The Shed, the home of Digital Innovation at Manchester Metropolitan University, in the centre of Manchester.

You will need a laptop, and something for making a lot of notes.

Tea and coffee will be provided throughout the day, with pastries in the morning and snacks during breaks. Lunch will also be provided and we should have a bar tab to cover a couple of drinks each afterwards.

You will be expected to comply with our code of conduct.

The Graaft concept

Workshops presented by Graaft bring undergraduate students and professionals together for a day of learning and networking.

For most students, the cost of attending a workshop like this is prohibitively expensive. Graaft works with Universities to provide the venue, therefore reducing the cost of putting on the workshop. In return, students benefit from heavily subsidised places and spending a day working with industry professionals.

For each professional ticket we sell, a student is given a subsidised place at the workshop for 10% of the professional ticket price .

Graaft is not-for-profit, so everyone benefits from great value, professional workshops.