ActiveX facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
ActiveX

Original author(s)	Microsoft
Developer(s)	Microsoft
Initial release	1996; 29 years ago (1996)
Last release	2013
Written in	C, C++
Operating system	Microsoft Windows, Solaris, Classic Mac OS, macOS
Platform	x86
Included with	Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Visual Studio, and Windows Media Player etc.
Predecessor	OLE 2.0 and COM
Type	Software framework

ActiveX was a special set of computer programs and rules made by Microsoft. It helped websites and other computer programs work together. This was especially useful when you downloaded things from the internet. Microsoft first introduced ActiveX in 1996. While it was designed to work on different computer systems, most ActiveX programs mainly ran on Microsoft Windows computers. This was because they often contained special code made for Windows.

ActiveX is not used much anymore. However, it is still supported in a special "Internet Explorer mode" within Microsoft Edge. Microsoft Edge is a newer web browser.

What are ActiveX Controls?

ActiveX controls were like small building blocks for software. Imagine them as tiny apps that could be added to bigger programs. They were used to make programs and websites more interactive. For example, a website might use an ActiveX control to show a special video player or a game.

Many popular Microsoft programs used these controls. This included Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office, and Windows Media Player. These programs used ActiveX controls to add features. They also let other programs use their features through ActiveX. Internet Explorer also allowed these controls to be put directly into web pages.

How ActiveX Started

Before ActiveX, Microsoft had other technologies. These were called OLE 2.0 and COM. They were a bit complicated for developers to use. So, in 1996, Microsoft simplified them and called the new version ActiveX. This made it easier for programmers to create these controls.

Starting with Internet Explorer 3.0 in 1996, Microsoft added a way to use ActiveX controls on web pages. If your browser found a web page that needed an ActiveX control, it could automatically download and install it. This made websites more exciting and interactive.

However, this also caused some problems.

• Most ActiveX controls only worked on Windows computers.
• They also created security risks. This was because the controls could install and run on your computer without much warning.

Making ActiveX Safer

Microsoft later added security features to make using ActiveX safer.

• They added digital signing. This was like a special stamp that showed who made the program.
• Controls had to say if they were safe for websites to use.
• Internet Explorer also had stricter security settings.
• It kept a list of bad or unsafe controls to block them.

Even with these changes, ActiveX was controversial. Microsoft said it was easy to use and performed well. But critics worried about security and that it didn't work on all computers. This made it less useful for the general internet.

The security of ActiveX mostly relied on trusting the people who made the software. Developers had to sign agreements promising not to create harmful programs. If the code was from a trusted source, it could run with full access to your computer. This meant any mistake in the code could become a security problem. This was different from how Java applets worked. Java applets ran in a "sandbox," which limited what they could do on your computer.

Where ActiveX Could Run

In 1996, Microsoft tried to make ActiveX work on other computers. They released tools for Macintosh and planned to support Solaris. But most ActiveX controls never worked well on all computer systems. This was because they were often written for Microsoft Windows and specific computer processors.

Because of this, using ActiveX controls for important parts of a web page limited who could use that page. For example, the government of South Korea started removing ActiveX from its websites around 2015. They wanted their websites to be available to more people using different devices.

Microsoft stopped supporting ActiveX in the Windows Store version of Internet Explorer 10. In 2015, Microsoft released Microsoft Edge. This new browser did not support ActiveX. This marked the end of ActiveX in Microsoft's main web browser. However, Microsoft Edge still has an "Internet Explorer mode" that supports ActiveX for older websites.

ActiveX in Other Programs

While ActiveX was mainly known for Internet Explorer, it could also be used in other applications.

• There was a "Mozilla ActiveX Control" that allowed some ActiveX to run in Firefox.
• "ScriptActive" for Netscape Navigator also allowed ActiveX controls.
• You can even run some ActiveX scripts in Google Chrome using special extensions. These extensions can make Chrome act like an Internet Explorer tab.

Other ActiveX Technologies

Microsoft also created many other products and software using ActiveX. Some are still used today.

• Active Scripting: This helps different scripting languages like JScript or VBScript work with programs like Internet Explorer.
• ActiveX Document: This lets you view and edit documents like Microsoft Word or Excel files inside web browsers.
• Active Server Pages (ASP): This was a technology for building dynamic websites.
• ActiveX Data Objects (ADO): This helped programs connect to and use databases.

See also

In Spanish: ActiveX para niños