Comprehensive Code Review Report - forscher.com

Date: November 21, 2025 Review Focus: Code quality, JavaScript best practices, performance, and unused dependencies

Executive Summary

The codebase shows good recent improvements with the removal of jQuery dependencies and implementation of performance optimizations. However, several issues remain that could impact performance, maintainability, and user experience.

Critical Issues

1. Orphaned jQuery Dependencies Still Present

Files: /js/jquery.unveil.js, /js/jquery.lazyload.min.js Issue: These jQuery plugins remain in the codebase despite jQuery being removed. They are not referenced in any HTML files and cannot function without jQuery. Impact: Unnecessary file bloat (~4.7KB combined) Recommendation: Delete both files as they serve no purpose without jQuery

2. GSAP Animation Memory Leak

File: /js/animation.js (line 41) Issue: The onComplete callback attempts to remove the circle element, but this never executes because the animation has repeat: -1 (infinite repeat). This creates a memory leak as circles accumulate indefinitely.

repeat: -1,
onComplete: () => circle.remove() // This never runs!

Impact: Memory usage grows continuously, potentially causing performance degradation Recommendation: Implement proper circle lifecycle management with a maximum lifetime or remove the onComplete callback

Code Quality Issues

3. CSS Positioning Conflict

File: /_sass/_sections.scss (lines 95-108) Issue: The #circle-container element has conflicting position declarations:

#circle-container {
  position: fixed;  // Line 97
  // ...
  position: absolute;  // Line 105 - Overrides fixed!
}

Impact: Unintended positioning behavior Recommendation: Remove the duplicate position declaration (line 105)

4. Font Loading Inefficiency

File: /style.scss (lines 19-34) Issue: Inconsolata font is defined in @font-face but appears unused in the actual styling. The typography mixin references it but is commented out. Files Present:

  • Inconsolata-Regular.woff (13.5KB)
  • Inconsolata-Bold.woff (15.9KB)
  • Also includes unused .woff2 and .ttf variants

Impact: Unnecessary network requests and bandwidth usage Recommendation: Either use the font or remove the @font-face declarations and font files

5. Unused Font Directories

Directories: /fonts/Louize-Display/, /fonts/NeueHaasUnica/ Issue: These font directories exist but are never referenced in any CSS or SCSS files Impact: Repository bloat Recommendation: Delete unused font directories

Performance Concerns

6. Missing Script Loading Attributes in Header

File: /_includes/header.html (line 25) Issue: The preloader.js script uses defer but could benefit from async since it doesn’t depend on other scripts Recommendation: Consider using async for truly independent scripts

7. Potential Race Condition in Page Type Detection

File: /js/page-type.js Issue: This script sets window.pageType but doesn’t check if the DOM is ready. If the script runs before the body element exists, it will fail silently. Recommendation: Add DOM ready check or ensure script placement after body tag

Security & Best Practices

8. SRI Hash Verification

Status: All SRI hashes are correctly configured and match the current file contents ✓

9. CSP Configuration

Status: Content Security Policy is properly configured with youtube-nocookie.com support ✓

10. Console Warnings Suppression

File: /js/consent-manager.js (lines 40, 53) Issue: Using console.warn in production code Recommendation: Consider using a debug flag or removing console statements in production

Code Organization

11. Mixed ES5/ES6 Syntax

Files: Various JavaScript files Issue: Inconsistent use of var (ES5) vs const/let (ES6)

  • preloader.js: Uses var
  • animation.js: Uses let/const
  • info-page.js: Uses var

Recommendation: Standardize on ES6 syntax (const/let) for consistency

12. Typography SCSS Complexity

File: /_sass/_typography.scss Issue: Duplicate and overlapping OpenType feature settings (lines 14-27)

font-feature-settings: "liga", "kern";  // Line 20
font-feature-settings: "kern", "liga", "clig", "calt";  // Line 26 (overrides above)

Recommendation: Consolidate font-feature-settings declarations

Positive Findings

  1. Successful jQuery Removal: All jQuery dependencies have been successfully removed from active code
  2. Performance Optimizations: RequestAnimationFrame implementation in animation.js
  3. Non-blocking Preloader: Immediate removal without delays
  4. GDPR Compliance: Comprehensive consent management implementation
  5. Security Headers: Properly configured CSP, X-Frame-Options, etc.
  6. Accessibility: Skip navigation link and ARIA labels present

Recommendations Priority

High Priority (Performance/Functionality Impact)

  1. Fix GSAP animation memory leak
  2. Remove orphaned jQuery plugins
  3. Resolve CSS positioning conflict

Medium Priority (Code Quality)

  1. Remove or implement Inconsolata font properly
  2. Standardize JavaScript syntax (ES6)
  3. Clean up typography SCSS

Low Priority (Maintenance)

  1. Remove unused font directories
  2. Remove console.warn statements
  3. Add DOM ready check to page-type.js

Summary

The codebase is generally well-maintained with good security practices and recent performance improvements. The main concerns are the animation memory leak and presence of unused dependencies. Addressing the high-priority items would significantly improve performance and code quality.

Total Unused Files to Remove:

  • 2 jQuery plugins (4.7KB)
  • 2 unused font directories
  • Potentially Inconsolata font files if not needed (29.4KB)

Estimated Performance Impact:

  • Removing unused files: ~34KB reduction in repository size
  • Fixing memory leak: Prevents continuous memory growth
  • Consolidating CSS: Cleaner rendering pipeline