What are Plug-ins?
Plug-ins are tools that enable your browser to do more than just display static text and graphics; they enable it to play audio files and video clips, run animated graphics and download documents.
The most common plug-ins can be divided up into the following types of media:
- Sound and video: Microsoft Media Player, Quicktime and RealPlayer all allow you to play audio and video files through your browser
- Animation: Macromedia Flash and Macromedia Shockwave enable you to view animated and graphic-intensive websites
- Documents: Adobe Acrobat is the standard plug-in used to display downloadable documents such as leaflets, brochures or manuals
Most browsers come with some of these plug-ins already installed. They can also be downloaded safely and free of charge from our toolkit.
