YSlow

• Download Component Size – YSlow provides the size of the downloaded component and provides suggestion in keeping the optimum amount of data size that the component should be. This include images, Javascripts, CSS and cookie size are just few of the examples.
• 

  YSlow Screenshot

  Bad Requests – It detects missing components that churns 404 errors.  Addressing 404 errors can help improve performance at the client and server end by removing requests made on missing objects as well as removing time needed to handle this requests on missing objects on the server.

• Detect duplicate requests/components – It detects duplicate HTTP requests made which degrades both the client and the server performance.  It also detects duplicate Javascripts which can result in duplicate request to the server or further slowing down the client browser.
• Placement of files – Another good feature made by YSlow is the detection of the placement of the Javascripts and CSS files.  The placement of the Javascripts and CSS files will help improve the performance at the client side.
• Detect expiry of components – YSlow can help determine if a component should be retrieved on every web page loading.  If a component such as an image (company banner) does not changed frequently, it is suggested to it expire at a far later date.  Else, for every time the page loads, a request will be made to the image.

What is great about YSlow is it provides you with the best practises for creating high performance web sites.  It helps you detect which components are too big and provide suggestions for you to improve the performance.  The best practises for high performance web sites can be found at Yahoo! YSlow Developer Network.

The disadvantage of YSlow is it is not installable on Internet Explorer, unlike HTTPWatch.  If you are a fan of the real-time analysing the response (wait) time on HTTPWatch, then you will be disappointed with YSlow on this.  YSlow does not provide any visual indicator on the time taken during loading (or requesting to the server) in real time.  It will only display the time only after the entire web page is downloaded.

The above are just some of the features that are available in YSlow.  You can download YSlow and start profiling your website. We hope to hear your review soon!

What iMacro can do is similar to most automated testing tool and macros.  It uses a record and playback engine, and generates a script for you.  The script is in .imm format but it is very intuitive and easy to understand (like plain English).   The script can be open by any text editor and amended to your needs.  You can pass in different parameter values to test your web application.  You can loop the script to test the different values.

The below sample script:

VERSION BUILD=6240709 RECORDER=FX
SET !ERRORIGNORE YES
SET !DATASOURCE C:\ DataSource\ ParameterList.txt
SET !LOOP 1
SET !DATASOURCE_LINE {{!LOOP}}
TAB T=1
TAB CLOSEALLOTHERS
URL GOTO=http://www.communitysamplesite. com/ members/{{!COL1}}/

1. The version of the build (no effect)
2. Set ignoring of error to yes – the effect is that the script will not stop if there is an error (similar to LoadRunner continue-on-error feature)
3. Set the data source to obtain the parameter value list – The parameter list can be manipulate by any text editor or excel-applications
4. Set the starting value (row ) from the parameter  to 1 – Meaning pulling the 1^st record
5. Set the starting row in the parameter list (data source)
6. Set the target tab on Firefox browser
7. Close all other tabs in Firefox  browser
8. Go to URL of the member of Community Sample Site

One thing that I’m unsure of is if iMacro has the ability to log errors during looping.  If you set iMacro to loop through the parameter values without SET !ERRORIGNORE YES, the script will abort when an error is encountered.  On the other hand, if SET !ERRORIGNORE YES is defined, the script will continue to run and not able to log any errors encountered.  I’m not too sure about this as I’ve not explored the log files yet or encountered any errors during my script execution.  Anyone who have done so, please fill us in with the details!  Greatly appreciated!

You can download iMacro from Mozilla Add-ons

SEATTLE, WA, May 27, 2008 – J9 Technologies Inc. today announced a new solution in its JDBC Protocol Add-in product line, enabling customers to extend the capabilities of HP LoadRunner, to stress and isolate problems in the backend data tier and deploy new applications with confidence. J9 is a member of the HP Quality Management Ecosystem, which provides alliance members the ability to develop test accelerators for HP Quality Center and HP Performance Center to support additional platforms, applications and environments.

The JDBC Protocol Add-in leverages HP LoadRunner technology, capturing all SQL traffic going from a Java application to the backend database and playing it back to directly exercise the data tier for high concurrency testing. This helps QA teams apply a measurable and repeatable load to the database and expose potential performance problems early in the development cycle. The auto-generation of database testing scripts replaces the need for writing complex Java code and frees up QA resources for other QA activities.

The JDBC Protocol Add-in from J9 Technologies is fully tested with the full suite of HP LoadRunner solutions, and can easily be used alongside all other HP LoadRunner protocols to create a more realistic and comprehensive load test.  For the last 6 years, J9 Technologies has been working closely with HP to ensure that customers get more out of their HP LoadRunner and HP Performance Center investments,” said Clay Roach, President and CEO for J9 Technologies. “We are very excited about this latest addition in our new line of JDBC Protocol Add-ins and the value it will deliver to our mutual customers for simplifying their JDBC testing efforts. The JDBC Protocol Add-in can help reduce testing cycles dramatically and enable QA, Dev and DBA teams to collaborate on fine-tuning database testing.”

“HP is committed to helping our customers rapidly deliver critical business applications that function and perform according to the needs of the business,” said Erez Barak, director of product marketing, Software, HP. “HP’s collaboration with J9 helps our customers increase efficiency by streamlining the complex process of database testing.”

JDBC Protocol Add-in is available today, and is compatible with HP LoadRunner and HP Performance Center version 9.1 and up.

About J9 Technologies Inc.

J9 Technologies leads the field in application performance analysis and diagnostics. Working side by side with our clients, J9 consultants utilize proven methodologies to solve mission critical application performance issues and maximize the scalability of complex application architectures. As a certified Hewlett Packard partner and reseller, J9 consultants can also install and train clients to use HP’s best-of-breed monitoring tools in-house so that firefighting becomes a thing of the past. J9 fine tunes business to ensure peak performance, scalability and optimization so clients can focus on their bottom line. More information is available at the Products Page.