By putting this on your mysql config file:
[mysqld]
innodb_buffer_pool_size = 2G
In dedicated db machines, you can set this to close to 80% of the available memory. This will avoid disk writes and speed up things in general.
The mysql configuration file is on :
/etc/my.cnf (usually)
Restaring mysql, and barabum barabim
The typical error message you get when this is too small is:
Mysql::Error: The total number of locks exceeds the lock table size:
1) If you are using a js library, like jquery, make sure to download it from the Google CDN instead of from your own server (to save bandwidth, have better response, and the chance the user already have it cached on his / her browser.
These are the must haves, if you want your blog to be successful, and problem free
1) Active your Akismet plugin
2) Install Google Analitycs for WordPress from the get go.
3) Ditto for SEO. Here’s a good plugin: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/seo-ultimate/
4) Subscribe to the following free auto-listing and update services (under “Settings / Writting”):
http://codex.wordpress.org/Update_Services
This usually ping the search engines to start indexing your site, but don’t count on it for that.
5) Generate a google site map, to let google know about your pages. Plugin: google XML Sitemaps http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-sitemap-generator/
If possible, try to create images for the web that are less than 1160 bytes, they will fit in just one TCP-IP packet and make the download easier.
Nobody seems to optimize nowadays though…