Improving performance of web applications

Although web browsers were initially designed for displaying simple documents, they have gradually evolved into complex pieces of software. Modern browsers are expected to provide support for complex web applications, which are often competing with native applications. By understanding how the browser displays content, developers can implement efficient architectural solutions and more easily overcome obstacles inherited from the browsers’ early design. They can efficiently utilize hardware resources and provide user experience comparable to that of native applications. The purpose of this paper is, therefore, to present concisely the architecture of modern browsers, and to suggest some of the most effective methods for optimizing web applications with the focus on networking, rendering and JavaScript.