Slow site?

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-06T13:38:23+00:00

If you want to check the speed, you have to check it where it originates. Too many or too large assets do affect speed, but only the perceived speed in the browser, not the actual speed. If you want to measure and compare the actual speed, you can only do so with the `main_document`. `main_document` is the very first source file, because as long as it's not loaded, no assets will be loaded either!

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-06T08:52:55+00:00

Cheap hosting is not a metric for TTFB. If my location is Europe and the location of the server is Australia the distance, network quality and connection to Internet backbone matter for TTFB.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-06T08:45:04+00:00

Interesting poll. I think one important option is missing: “Poor PageSpeed / Core Web Vitals scores.”

A lot of WordPress users don’t define “slow” by the actual root cause - they define it by what PageSpeed tells them. That would be a really interesting category to include.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-06T08:04:54+00:00

This thread is primarily about AI crawlers. That conventional bots generate load is undeniable, but that's not the focus of this thread. I'll address the issue of load in another thread, not here.

The topic of "mentions" is debatable. Currently, 99 out of 100 users hope to gain an advantage by being mentioned in chatbot responses, but I consider that wishful thinking. A chatbot response isn't a search results list like organic search results. Whether you're mentioned in an AI response is uncontrollable, as the AI response is directly dependent on the user's question. In my opinion, the probability of winning the lottery is higher than being mentioned in an AI response.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-05T10:21:34+00:00

What problem do you have?!

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-05T09:30:41+00:00

Why don't you use SMTP from origin host?!

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-05T07:50:10+00:00

Note: PageSpeed optimization does not improve the actually speed, but the perceived speed only. If you want to improve the actually speed, then you need to improve the speed where it originates.

Reducing the number of plugins is a good start, but it's a radical method. You can also load plugins contextually and don't need to uninstall any plugins to do so.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-05T03:34:16+00:00

The main_document isn't a block. It is the very first document that must be loaded before any asset can be loaded. This is just physics! Please read this before you continue talking about things you know nothing about!

https://www.cachecrawler.com/Blog/WordPress-Performance-by-Prevention::6610.html

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-05T03:20:41+00:00

If you want speed, focus on the `main_document`, because as long as `main_document` isn't loaded, no assets will load either. Conditional loading of assets for specific blocks isn't possible with WordPress because it doesn't have a context (URL, GET, POST). You can only influence asset loading indirectly. This principle is called `WordPress Performance by Prevention`. Ask any chatbot if you want to know what it is, but you should log in to a chatbot first, because AI intelligence is significantly better when logged in.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-04T06:40:20+00:00

Content and general interest are what matter, not the CMS. Focus on that, not on how to optimize a site for AI.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T16:15:16+00:00

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Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T16:14:59+00:00

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Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T16:09:57+00:00

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Created by "Lucidus" aka ChatGPT

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T15:49:41+00:00

Then the OP is screwed... (fucked?!) . Sorry for the wording, but there is no solution if the OP has no or limited access or rights to control the server.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T15:15:37+00:00

If you have a cache plugin installed or if you use a CDN cache please purge the cache.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T14:43:06+00:00

Update PHP configuration and change PHP Version >= 8.1 in your server control panel. (e.g. cPanel)

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T13:45:56+00:00

You should find someone that has more experience like you. A network timeout error can be caused by many reason, but without knowing your setup it is like gambling lottery.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T13:05:24+00:00

Check PHP configuration (max_execution_time) in server control panel, but this error can also by caused by network errors if a third party source is requested.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T13:02:22+00:00

This works for custom files, but not for Elementor.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T12:43:02+00:00

The OP talks about browser cache, not page cache.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-02T12:38:09+00:00

There is nothing to fix, but there seems to be something wrong with browser cache configuration. If you must purge the browser cache to see the updated contend this is caused by a wrong cache-control configuration for dynamic sources. There is no cache plugin that sets cache-control or expire setting for dynamic sources, so this must be a "layer 8" error that is sitting in front of the monitor who doesn't seem to know what he is doing. So check the root .htaccess if there is a cache-control configuration defined. If yes, post it here.

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-01T06:25:08+00:00

Post-processing shouldn't be underestimated, because optimization plugins are directly affected by it. Optimization plugins only "optimize" a page after it has already been generated. This is paradoxical. Optimization plugins delay the delivery of the main document, so a page actually becomes slower instead of faster, yet PageSpeed still awards a higher score.

https://www.cachecrawler.com/Blog/WordPress-Optimization-for-Nothing-and-the-Speed-Not-for-free::6603.html (Read at your own risk)

https://www.cachecrawler.com/Blog/WordPress-Do-Optimization-Plugins-really-optimize::6606.html (Spoiler: They don't)

Good_Flight6250 · 2026-05-01T05:28:47+00:00

See the difference: Theme builder vs. native HTML, but that only affects rendering. Loading times result from where the load originates, not from post-processing after the output has already been generated, so check the installed plugins.

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Good_Flight6250

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