Debug

In the below learn how using Google Chrome's built-in DevTools I was able to debug javascript in Chrome that improved the page load time for our client.

I was recently in a situation where, in trying to optimize a site for performance reasons, I needed to track down what was generating some above-the-fold content. Specifically, this was a client's site that we had inherited as part of a Drupal support contract. On mobile-sized screens, the homepage was displaying a banner ad for the company's mobile app, which provided a download link for the app.

Debugging is an essential part of any developer’s development process. Most of us are familiar with the Xdebug debugger, but there are also a handful of other debugging tools we can utilize in our workflows.

To many Drupal developers, Varnish is a black magic. When it works, we marvel at its speed; when it’s broken, we break out in cold sweat. Recently, a client of ours needed to figure out why their homepage was not being cached by Varnish, and I learned good lessons debugging the issue. I hope you can learn from me and avoid my mistakes in the future!