CertKit is Out of Beta
Why I built a certificate management platform, what's wrong with the way we handle certs today, and why CertKit exists as a commercial product now.
Todd H. Gardner
Todd H. Gardner builds software that people actually pay for. Todd's on a mission to make simple tools for complicated problems, fight unnecessary complexity, and show that software can actually make money without a VC sugar daddy.
Latest posts
Installing TrackJS on CertKit
Learn how I set up TrackJS for production JavaScript error monitoring on CertKit, configure ignore rules to filter out third-party noise, and create actionable error alerts that actually matter.
Build vs Buy: What This Week's Outages Should Teach You
The simple rule everyone gets wrong: build what makes you unique, buy what makes you run. But whatever you do, make sure you understand it well enough to fix it when it breaks. Because it will break.
Build vs Buy: Software Systems at Jurassic Park
We were so preoccupied with whether we could, we didn’t stop to think if we should. Nowhere at Jurassic Park was this more true than how we developed software.
I tried doing a Press Releases for SEO. It didn't work.
An honest look at using press releases for link building and SEO in 2025. Spoiler: save your money.
Todd writes on Hackernoon
I was recently approved as an author for Hackernoon! I plan to write about cybersecurity and server certificates there. My first article was already published.
Synthetic vs RUM Web Performance
Why Real User Monitoring is more important for web performance than synthetic monitoring, and why it's so hard. Request Metrics tries to combine them both in a single platform.
The only way to make websites faster
Todd shares the secret way to make websites faster: do fewer things. Fewer fonts, smaller images, less distance.
The Hotel WiFi Problem: Building Resilient JavaScript Apps
Your app works everywhere except that one customer's corporate network. Here's how to build JavaScript apps that survive hostile networks, captive portals, and the special hell of hotel WiFi.
SPDY Stream 008 with Todd Gardner
I was a guest on Henri Helvetica's SPDY Stream Podcast about web performance. We talked about industry challenges, real user monitoring, and synthetic testing.
GTMetrix Alternatives: Why You Need More Than Just Synthetic Testing
GTMetrix was great when it was free, but paying for synthetic tests doesn’t make sense anymore. This post breaks down better alternatives that combine Synthetic Testing, Real User Monitoring (RUM), and Google’s CrUX data to give you a full picture of your website’s performance—so you can fix what actually matters.
Optimizing Website Images for Performance and SEO
Learn how to optimize website images for faster load times, better SEO, and improved Core Web Vitals. This guide covers choosing the right format, compression, lazy loading, responsive images, and caching strategies.
How to Fix Long Animation Frames (LoAF) and Speed Up Your Website
If you’ve noticed your website feeling sluggish or unresponsive—especially during animations—you might be running into Long Animation Frames (LoAFs). LoAFs happen when a browser takes longer than 50 milliseconds to render an animation frame, leading to a janky experience that can frustrate users.
Update 2: NDC London, PubConf, and Request Metrics Analytics
Recorded live from Speyside Scotland, right after NDC London 2023 and PubConf. Thoughts on the conference, web application security, and then getting back to Request Metrics with more work on the Analytics side of the product.
Update 1: 2022 Year in Review
The first of (hopefully) a new series of video updates about the web, observability, and my businesses. I had to shut down my Revue-based newsletter, which was honestly difficult to keep up with because writing is hard. Video is way more fun!
Pub Productivity and the Surface Pro
I wanted a device for working from the Pub. As a small-business owner, I'm always working: at home, at lunch, at happy-hour. I wanted a device more portable than my workhorse laptop so that I could effortlessly bring it with me, but more functional than my mobile phone.
Apple Power Adapter Hack
I just purchased a new 2015 Macbook Pro, which is fantastic. The first brand of computer that I've ever purchased more than once. But they have a major flaw: the Power Adapter cords.
Combine Gmail and Google Apps Inboxes
I've recently setup a Google Apps account for TrackJS. Right away I missed having all my email in one place--don't make me have two tabs open Google!
Getting Done
Software isn't done. It's never done, but it can be good enough. This blog is good enough, for now. Now I'm moving forward to shipping things that matter.