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Internet Explorer Home PageUsing ActiveX Controls

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Caution, Live Objects on Web Pages!
ActiveX™ Controls activate Web pages! See the scrolling Internet Explorer logo we added to this page with the ActiveX Marquee Control? Notice that you didn't have to download a program in order to view it. That's because ActiveX Controls are software components that run right in Internet Explorer. They're small, slick, and versatile—the possibilities for creating cool content with ActiveX Controls are limitless. Any content you dream up can be created with an ActiveX Control because the control can be written in most programming languages, including Java and Microsoft Visual Basic®. Internet Explorer also offers built-in protection against downloading an ActiveX Control that might contain a virus. To view other cool controls, visit the ActiveX Gallery. To find out more technical information about them, visit the Microsoft SiteBuilders Workshop.

You're not getting the most out of this page unless you're running Internet Explorer 3.0.



Deciding Whether to View an ActiveX Control

ActiveX Controls are easy to create, and hundreds of them already exist on the Web. Some of them could contain viruses, which you don't want to download. Internet Explorer comes with Authenticode™, a security technology that enables developers to digitally sign their software code.

A digital signature is like a hologram on a software box—it tells you who created the software and guarantees that it was not tampered with after it left the manufacturer.

When you visit a Web page that has an ActiveX Control, Internet Explorer checks to see if it has been digitally signed. If it hasn't, Internet Explorer displays the following dialog box, which lets you decide whether you want to take a chance and download the control.

If the control has been signed, Internet Explorer displays a certificate such as this one.


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