Web performance testing is crucial for ensuring optimal user experience. It involves measuring various metrics including request count, resource loading times, DOM processing, and user experience indicators like First Contentful Paint, Largest Contentful Paint, and Cumulative Layout Shift. Understanding these metrics helps identify bottlenecks and optimize website performance.
Request count is a fundamental web performance metric. Each webpage typically requires multiple HTTP requests to load completely - HTML document, CSS stylesheets, JavaScript files, images, and other resources. More requests mean more round trips between browser and server, increasing load time. Optimization strategies include combining files, using content delivery networks, compressing assets, and minimizing the number of external resources.