Apropos Tech Solutions Corp. Blog

Category: web

  • Web: is my site on a LiteSpeed server? (Finding out from Firefox)

    Being on a LiteSpeed server, you can possibly use the LiteSpeed Cache.

    The following is by my understanding.

    Once a site gets busy, for instance a WordPress site, a cache can make the difference between the site being slow versus normal.

    On my oldest WordPress site, which went up in 2012, I have always used LiteSpeed Cache, except for a couple of interruptions during updates. When I had to run the site without it, I really noticed how much slower it loaded. On that site, LiteSpeed Cache is the only plugin I use. (See my post from June 5, 2026 for some background thoughts about plugins.)

    So, LiteSpeed Cache is a plugin that I like. However, as I understand, in order to use the LiteSpeed cache, one needs to be hosted on a LiteSpeed server. (Perhaps that’s a slight oversimplification, but likely good enough for a starter’s perspective.) How does one discover if they are?

    Here’s how I did so on Firefox:

    1. On a page from the site, right-click on a non-active part. From the drop-down, click Inspect.
    2. On the new pane that appears, find Network and click on it.
    3. Reload the page. A bunch of resources will be listed as they load.
    4. Click on any of the resources. A new pane will appear; on it, find Headers and click it.
    5. Underneath the Headers title, find Response Headers and scroll down. An entry like server: LiteSpeed indicates that, indeed, the site is on a LiteSpeed server.

    There are many potential directions to follow from this post. One motivation for finding if one’s on the LiteSpeed server is to discover whether using the LiteSpeed Cache is a possibility, perhaps even as a plugin if the site is WordPress.

    For follow-up I intend to mention corresponding directions relevant to Chrome and related browsers.

    Source:

    docs.litespeedtech.com

    w3.org

    -JS

  • Web: subdirectory vs subdomain

    Subdirectories and subdomains can be used to organize web content. What are they, and how are they used?

    The following is my understanding.

    Let’s imagine a site called site101.tld101. In such a case, tld101 is the top-level-domain or tld. The domain, aka root domain, is site101.tld101. Furthermore, site101.tld101/blog is a subdirectory.

    Imagine then the address uppersite.site101.tld101. In that case, uppersite is a subdomain.

    Subdomains, it seems, are seen by search engines as separate sites from the domains they are hosted on. A subdomain, therefore, can be used to host separate content from what’s on the root domain. A subdirectory, on the other hand, is treated by search engines as part of the root domain site.

    Source:

    lovable.dev/guides

    namecheap.com

    -JS

  • Computer constructs: caches, part 0

    What is a cache? What are some types of them?

    The following is my understanding about caches.

    In French, cacher means “to hide.” However, in woods-person terms, “to hide” and “to store” are closely related, because storing food means hiding it from foragers. Hence, a cache is, functionally, a place to store stuff.

    In computer terms, a cache typically means a place where results are stored so the CPU doesn’t have to figure them out again. Rather, said responses can just be brought from storage immediately. Cache storage needs to be fast in order to effectively save time.

    Types of caches have evolved. They may be classified on how fast they are to retrieve from, as well as by what they store. In the web world, for instance, page caches store pre-built pages that are called for often. Object caches store answers to database queries, for instance, that are often requested. Opcode caches store parts of computer programs that are run often. In each case, the code has been refined into a finished solution, or closer to one, so the CPU doesn’t have to start from scratch to respond to a request.

    On a website that delivers complex content, such as a WordPress site might become, all three of the caches described above might be used. Typically, without a cache, the content may be delivered noticeably slower compared to when a cache is used. At high levels, caches can be calibrated to be even more efficient.

    Source:

    php.net: OPcache

    gxmediagy.com: “OPcache, Object Cache, and Page Cache: The Three Layers That Make Websites Feel Instant”

    -JS

  • Web: Cookies, part 0

    Beginning ideas about cookies.

    Here’s my understanding about cookies:

    Cookies are bits of information stored on one’s browser. When you visit a site, that site may store one or more cookies on the browser. Then, when you return later, that same site can retrieve that information.

    Cookies can be retrieved to help the browser reload the page in the state you seemed to want it. They can also store information you entered on the site, such as a username and/or password. That way, as one navigates pages of the same site, one needn’t keep signing in each time.

    A third party advertiser on a site the browser visits may also be able to store a cookie on that browser. However, to my knowledge, a site can only recall its own cookies, not ones from other sites.

    Tracking cookies, as they are called, are used to find out other sites a browser visited. However, because a site can only recall its own cookies from the browser, tracking cookies only work when there is common ownership among the sites somehow. That could happen, for instance, if the same advertiser has ads on several sites the browser visits. In such a case, that advertiser might be able to retrieve cookies it put from all those sites, therefore realizing that browser visited them all.

    Cookies likely aren’t that much of a menace, but things can get a bit overdone sometimes, just on principle. I recall, with one cookie permission, a site mentioning its 841 partners would be sharing information based on cookies that would be placed on my browser. Seriously?

    Source:

    YouTube: Ask Leo! “What Are Tracking Cookies, and Should They Concern Me?”

    -JS