Plugins for Internet Users

What are Internet Plug-ins?

While a plain web browser allows you to view static HTML pages, Plug-ins are optional software additions that enhance and/or add functionality to a web browser. This means that above and beyond reading a basic web page, plug-ins let you watch Internet movies and animation, hear sound and music, read special Adobe documents, play online games, and do 3-D interaction.

What Plug-ins I should have?

Although new plug-in software is released every week, there are about 12 key plug-ins and add-on software that will serve you 99% of the time:

1. Adobe Acrobat Reader (for .pdf files)
2. Java Virtual Machine (JVM to run Java applets)
3. Macromedia Flash Player (to run .swf movies)
4. Macromedia Shockwave Player (to run heavy-duty .swf movies)
5. Real Audio Player (to listen to .ram files)
6. Apple Quicktime (to see 3d Virtual Reality schematics)
7. Windows Media Player (to run a variety of movies and music formats)
8. Windows WinAmp (to play downloaded .mp3 and .wav files)
9. "Pop-Up Killer" software (to reduce the annoying advertisements)
10. Anti Virus software
11. Optional browser toolbars, like Google toolbar, Yahoo toolbar, or StumleUpon toolbar
12. WinZip (to compress/decompress downloaded files)
(although technically not plug-ins, WinZip and AV software work as silent partners to help you download web files, and to prevent nasty programs from infecting your computer)

What do these Plug-Ins Do For Me?

Anytime you visit a web page that includes more than simple HTML content, you are likely to need at least one plug-in.

For example, on a daily basis, Flash Player is perhaps the most needed plug-in. 75% of the animated advertisements you see online are Flash .swf “movies” (Shockwave format). Here is one Flash movie example: Any Given Sunday.

The second most common plug-in need is for Adobe Acrobat Reader .pdf (Portable Document Format) viewing. Most government forms, online application forms, and a multitude of other documents use .pdf format on the Web.

The third most common plug-in would be a movie/audio player to run .mov, .mp3, .wav, .au, and .avi files. Windows Media Player is perhaps the most popular for this purpose, but you can use a multitude of other movie/audio choices.

The fourth most common enhancement to get is WinZip, which allows you to download large files in “compressed” (shrunken file size) .zip format, and then expand the compressed files for full use on your computer. This is the smartest tool for sending either large files, or batches of many smaller files. Technically, WinZip is not a "plug-in", but it certainly is recommended as a web browsing partner tool.

Depending on your browser habits, the likely fifth-most-common plug-in need would be for Java Virtual Machine (JVM). The JVM allows you to run online games and online program “applets” that are written in the Java programming language. Here are some sample Java game applets.

How do I find these Internet plug-ins?

80% of the time, the plug-ins will find you! This means that most web pages requiring plug-in software will alert you if the particular plug-in is missing from your computer. The browser will then either present you with a link to, or take you directly to the webpage where the needed plug-in can be found and installed from.

If you have the most current version of the browser, some plug-ins will be already built-in.

The “hard way” of finding the plug-ins is to manually search for them via the search engines such as Google, MSN, Yahoo, etc. In most cases you will not need to do that. Do be careful when downloading plug-ins though. Some contain so-called “Spyware” (which will be covered in a separate article) and can be detrimental to your computer’s health.

How do I install plug-ins?

When you visit a website that has some “extras” to present to you, you will be informed that the browser needs you to install something.

You will then be given directions on what to do to complete the installation. In most cases, these installations are very easy and consist of you clicking on a button, or two. Typically, you might be asked to accept the “license agreement”, or click a “Next” or an “OK” button once or twice, and the installation will be underway.

Sometimes, however, you might be asked if you want to proceed with the immediate installation, or save the installer file somewhere on your computer, for installation at a later time. The recommended course of action would be to save the file, especially if it is rather large, and your connection is via 56K (or less) modem. The most common place to save the installer file is on your Desktop; it will be easy to find, you will only need it once, and you can delete it afterwards. It is also a good idea to reboot the computer after installing anything.

Where do I go to manually get plug-ins?

Yahoo Toolbar – recommended for killing popup ads and for enhanced web browsing:
http://toolbar.yahoo.com/

Acrobat – for viewing of PDF files:
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

Shockwave - for animation, games and multimedia files:
http://sdc.shockwave.com/shockwave/download/frameset.fhtml?

Flash - for animation, games and navigation:
http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash

Java VM – for running Java applets such as an ICQ:
http://www.virtualmachine.tk/
or here:
http://java-virtual-machine.net/download.html

Quicktime – for watching files such as movie trailers:
http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/

Real Player – also used to watch video on the Net:
http://www.real.com/player/

Media Player - yet another format used for video on the net:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download/default.asp

Pop-up Window Killers - to reduce annoying advertising:
http://download.com.com/sort/3120-2001-0-1-3.html?qt=pop+up+killer&ca=2001

Not technically plug-ins but nice-to-have utilities:

WinZip - to uncompress .zip files (the Evaluation copy is free for 30 days, then is $29 USD after that): http://www.winzip.com/download.htm

Winamp - to play .mp3 and .wav files you may download:
http://www.winamp.com/player/

Anti-Virus - to help prevent nasty programs infecting your computer:
http://download.com.com/sort/3120-2001-0-1-4.html?qt=anti-virus&ca=2001

I assure you these plug-ins and utilities will enhance your brwosing experience.

Yours Truly,
Ferdinand Che