In This Edition
New White Paper: Horizontally Scalable Web Applications
New White Paper: Horizontally Scalable Web Applications
Applications need to scale upwards to remain responsive during times of heavy load and backwards to reduce TCO when costly resources are no longer needed. Our aim is to provide a timely and well-performing user experience, without needing to invest in a permanent platform ready for the biggest potential future traffic spike.
This white paper examines some strategies for building scalable web applications, and discusses the overhead required for each one. We will look at techniques such as:
- Breaking applications into a series of loosely-coupled subsystems, tied together via APIs
- Horizontally scaling subsystems individually, as opposed to vertically scaling the entire application
- Scaling the database by using techniques like replication, sharding or federation
We will also make some recommendations about the kinds of scenarios which render each strategy a useful platform choice.
Download a PDF copy nowSecuring competitive advantage with customised PHP training
QS, the world's leading career and education network, has built its success around highly innovative online solutions. They stay firmly ahead of their competitors by bringing revolutionary web-based projects to market faster than anyone else in their field.
Earlier this year, QS asked Ibuildings to deliver customised PHP training for its internal development team. The results are impressive: expertise and confidence levels across the team are consistently high and productivity has been boosted.
Read our latest case study to find out more about how we helped QS gain tighter control over their in-house projects and further increase their competitive advantage.
Case study: QSIs your site speedy enough for Google?
Google recently announced that it now includes website speed into its search ranking algorithms. So the faster your website responds to requests, the more value Google places on it. This makes sense, as slow sites reduce usability and are thus less likely to meet the visitors' expectations.
Our latest white paper (see above) gives you tips on how to make scalability a core feature of your system, without adding unnecessary overhead to your infrastructure. To learn more about designing scalable, well-performing web applications, stay tuned to our blog.
Want someone else to have a look at your site, pinpoint the bottlenecks, and help you unclog them? Check out our performance audit, or
tell us how we can help you.
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