Speed up WordPress with Google Gears and the Turbo Feature
By Kym Huynh, posted Nov 6 2009 at 8:17 am | No Comments »
Hear more about Turbo in WordPress in WordCast 74: Turbo Speed, Captain!
The Turbo link is in the top right of your WordPress admin
Finding yourself in need of something a little bit faster? WordPress has the ability to turbo charge your experience using a function aptly named “Turbo”.
Turbo uses a browser-extension called Google Gears to store files on your computer locally, and run certain scripts on your computer rather than on your server. This speeds up WordPress’s loading times significantly.
Google Gears is a browser extension that enhances web applications (such as WordPress) by allowing them to store files on your computer and run certain scripts and processes on your local system rather than on the server.
WordPress uses Gears for Turbo mode, which, when enabled, will allow it to store images and web page components and processes in the user’s local computer. This will not only decrease loading times but also reduce unnecessary web traffic. The speed increase will be most noticeable during periods of slow Internet speeds (when loading files and processes from your own computer will have the most significant speed difference from loading them from your server).
How do I enable Turbo in WordPress?
To turbo charge your WordPress, simply click on the “Turbo” link near the top of the administration panel. You will then be prompted to download an extention called “Google Gears” which is required in order for “Turbo” mode to work. (UPDATE: The Turbo option has since been moved to the Tools Menu>>Tools page.)
The browser will then need be restarted. Go once again to the administration panel and click again on the “Turbo” link to allow Google Gears to work its magic.
Turbo mode is enabled for both .org (self-hosted) and .com (hosted) WordPress versions.
Hear more about Turbo in WordPress in WordCast 74: Turbo Speed, Captain!
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