Plugins - what they are and why they are used. What is a WordPress engine add-on? Expansion of program functionality

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And begins to get to know him, i.e. for newbies.

Let me remind you once again that this engine has a number of capabilities and is universal. Its functions can be constantly improved, both by yourself, having certain knowledge, and with the help of ready-made solutions.

What is a plugin?

A plugin is a software module that is connected to the main program and is designed to expand its capabilities.

They add the necessary functionality to the site and make it more beautiful. Let me give you a comparison, for example, with a bodybuilder. If a person wants to look beautiful and have physical strength, he goes to the fitness room and builds muscle mass (pumps up). We do the same with the engine. WordPress by installing plugins on it.

An example of their work: the “up” button on the site, page navigation, pop-ups, installation social buttons, site maps, etc. Each plugin has its own task, function.

The number of their installation depends on the preferences of the site owner. But it's not that simple. Each plugin is unique and has its own weight, i.e. carries a load on the site. Which affects the page loading speed and the operation of the entire blog as a whole.

So just before installation, assemble maximum amount information about the plugin. To do this, type the name into a search engine and read everything, including comments about it (what reviews visitors leave).

Installing a plugin on a blog.

Installation can be done in several ways. Let's look at them all, and choose which one is more convenient for you. Also, in addition to installation, we will decide how to remove it.

First way. This method is the easiest. Go to the WordPress admin panel in the “Plugins” section.

Then “Add new” and in the empty search engine window that opens, enter the name of the plugin we need (in in this case Rus-To-Lat) and then “Search for a plugin”.

The search engine gave us a result stating that the plugin was found and invites us to look detailed information about it or install it immediately. Click “Install” and confirm your action.

That’s it, the plugin files are installed on the hosting and now we need to put it into operation - click “Activate plugin”.

This completes the installation. Some plugins require configuration after installation. To do this, you need to find where they are (perhaps in “Tools” or in “Options”). Everyone has their own individual settings and location.

Second way. It often happens that the above method does not give results, i.e. The search engine in the admin panel does not find the plugin. Then you have to look for it through the main search engines and download the plugin archive first to your computer, then to your hosting. The procedure is almost the same.

Third way. Installation via FTP connection to hosting. I use . This option is the most reliable if done correctly. As in the second method, the archive must be uploaded to HDD computer. Just before uploading it to your hosting, you should unzip it. Here is the path to the folder with plugin files /public_html/wp-content/plugins. Then, after installation, activate it in the admin panel.

Removing plugins.

To remove a plugin, you must first deactivate it. Go to the admin panel, go to “Plugins”, then “Installed”.

We are looking for the required “Deactivate” and “Delete”. You can get rid of an unnecessary plugin via FTP access to your hosting.

Where to download the necessary plugins.

I note that wordpress.org is the official website WordPress .

Plugins are good, but don't get carried away.

Without them, it is impossible to imagine a comfortable pastime near the computer. Thanks to them, you can not only watch movies and videos on the channel, but also improve the work own blog. We suggest you learn how to install and use useful plugins on a personal computer, as well as which plugin is better.

What is a plugin in a computer?

Not every Internet user knows what a plugin is and what plugins are needed for. Among them there are useful, not very necessary and even viral ones. Therefore, it is important to know where to find them and how to remove them if necessary. A plugin is an independently controlled software module that is capable of dynamically connecting to the main program, designed to expand or use its capabilities. Plugins are often used for convenience. Thanks to them, you can improve your blog:

get rid of spammers;
change the date and language to Russian;
optimize articles.

Types of plugins

It is important not only to understand what a plugin is, but also to know what types there are. There are these types of plugins:

For browsers – plays animations and videos.
For image editors - effects for processing, new filters.
For programs for working with sounds - tools for applying effects to sound, sample libraries.
For games - they are often called mods or patches, which provide new features in the gameplay, new levels, new characters and do not work separately from the original game.
For websites – used for the convenient functioning of a website or blog. They help optimize articles, translate dates and languages into Russian, and correct links.

How to download the plugin?

You can enjoy all the possibilities of the Internet by installing all the necessary plugins on your computer. We suggest you find out how to download the most popular and in-demand Flash plugin. To do this, it is important to follow these instructions:

Go to download page Flash Player Adobe.
Upload file Flash installations. Here you need to pay attention to the checkbox for installing optional programs. If you do not clear the checkbox before downloading, the programs will be installed when you run the Flash installer.
Once the download is complete, you should close your browser.

Why can't the plugin load?

Sometimes beginners and more experienced users encounter problems loading plugins. It is especially unpleasant when the main software modules do not work, without which it is impossible to watch videos on the computer. So why won't the plugin load? Experts say there is no single cause for the problem. However, often the problem lies in the software version that is not updated.

Often during installation they uncheck this important point « Automatic update when connected to the network." In addition, the cause of the problem may be in the browser. So, one of the differences Opera browser V unstable work plugins. The problem may also be in the long-standing clearing of your browsing history. It is clear that the accumulated excess information in random access memory cannot improve the performance of the device. Perhaps the plugin itself was downloaded a long time ago and has never been updated during all this time.

How to install the plugin?

The next step after downloading is to install the plugin Adobe Flash Player. To do this, you must follow these instructions:

Uncheck "Yes, install" Google Chrome(optional)" and click on the "Download" button.
After redirecting to new page, you will see a special dialog box in which you need to click the “Launch” button. Depending on the browser and settings you use, the file may download automatically. In this case, you need to wait for the download to finish and run the file yourself.

How to run the plugin?

Once the required plugin is downloaded and installed on your computer, it is important to know how to use the plugin in Opera. To do this you need to do the following:

Launch the browser.
In the address field enter opera://plugins.
On the page that opens, find Adobe Flash Player.
Click the “Enable” button.
If the list contains several external modules, you need to select “Show details” and enable the external module.

Why doesn't the plugin work?

There may not be many reasons why the plugin does not work. Often this situation can arise when the version of the browser you are using is not designed to work with the plugin. In addition, the reason may be that the code of a particular plugin contains errors, that is, there is a likely risk that the plugin will not be supported. This often happens because the user installs some add-ons on a computer that is running a new operating system.

Why doesn't the plugin launch?

Knowing what a plugin is is not enough, it is also important to know how to use it. Sometimes network users are faced with the fact that flash games and video clips do not start. The reason is the disabled Adobe Flash Player plugin, which needs to be activated. We suggest you find out how to enable the plugin. To do this, you need to do one of the following:

To restart a computer. Perhaps after a reboot the plugin will start working. In this case, the module should be run with administrator rights. To do this, right-click on the browser shortcut and select “Properties”, go to the “Compatibility” tab, check the box to run the program as administrator and click “OK”.
Update your browser to the latest version.
Check if the plugin is enabled. To do this, enter about:plugins in the browser line (or browser://plugins for Yandex.Browser, opera://plugins for Opera, chrome://plugins for Chrom) and press “enter”. Having found a plugin, you need to see whether it is enabled or not. If not enabled, you need to click on “enable”.
IN address bar type the same commands and see how many plugins are installed. If there are two, then one needs to be disabled.
Clear cache and cookies.
Scan your computer for viruses. Sometimes they can be the reason why the plugin does not start.

The plugin is not supported - what should I do?

If plugins are not opening, you need to find out what the problem is and fix it as soon as possible. To run the plugin, you need to do the following:

Use a different browser. Maybe, this version browser is not designed to work with a specific plugin.
Delete the existing plugin and upload a new one. The problem may be errors in the code software module.
Go to the official website and download the installation program package.

How to disable plugins?

To disable hidden plugins, in different , you need to do the following:

IN Google browser Chrome in the address bar enter chrome://plugins.
In the page that opens, find browser plugins.
Find the required plugin and select “Disable”.

How to remove a plugin?

Not all novice Internet users know how to remove the Adobe Flash Player plugin. To do this you need:

Download the program Adobe removal Flash Player. You need to save the program where it can be easily found after restarting the computer.
Close all browsers and other programs that use Flash.
Run the uninstaller tool. To do this, double-click on the uninstall programs icon. You must follow the instructions to delete files and folders. Select “Start” - “Run”. Copy and paste - C:\Windows\system32\Macromed\Flash, then click “ok”. Then you need to delete all the files in the folder.
Make sure complete removal software module. You need to restart your computer, open your browser and check for the plugin.

Hello dear reader! In this article we will talk about what plugins are and how they can be useful. Many people even know how to install and remove them, but at the same time they do not fully understand what they are actually dealing with. We will try to figure this out today.

What is a plugin? The word “plugin” comes from the English plug-in (translation of noun module, adj. removable, block). A plugin is a module for a program that is created separately and, if necessary, can be connected to an already running application. The main task of the plugin is to expand the functionality of the main program.

For them to work, it is necessary that the main program provides the ability to connect additional modules (plugins). Thus, the plugin is completely dependent on the main program and cannot be used separately from it.

The main program, on the contrary, is able to connect and use plugins independently of each other. The functionality of the program may be reduced due to the lack of additional features provided by plugins.

With some programs, a somewhat inconvenient situation is possible when, after exiting new version, the plugin for them is not immediately updated, and it may turn out that they are not able to work with each other. In this case, you must wait until the plugin version is updated to restore the functionality it provides.

Installing plugins in different applications can be quite different. For example, Adobe Flash Player will offer to install itself as a browser add-on. This will happen if you access a page on the Internet that contains information for which you need it to play. You can read one example of installing the plugin in my article “”.

Other programs have created a special tool for managing plugins. As an example of such an application, I will give a mail program. To manage plugins in it, you need to click “Tools” - “Add-ons”. You can do everything in the window that appears necessary actions in the most convenient way: find, install and remove, turn on and off.

In general, the modularity principle that works when using plugins is very good.

Installation example in Mozilla Firefox:

Judge for yourself. What's better? Have a program that has basic functionality in some area, and large collection plugins for it that, if necessary, expand this functionality? Or big program who can do a lot of things at once? I believe that it is much more practical to use a tool whose functionality can be expanded as needed, without wasting computer resources on unnecessary functions.

For greater clarity, here are a few examples of useful and common plugins. Already mentioned above, Adobe Flash Player for various Internet browsers is necessary to display video. PDF browser plugin from Foxit allows you to view *.pdf documents posted on the Internet right inside the browser.

There are a lot of different plugins for the program Adobe Photoshop, allowing you to apply various effects to images.

Plugins for mail programs. These may be additions from third party companies, for example a plugin from the developer antivirus program to check emails for SPAM and viruses. There are also many native plugins for mail clients, for example for spell checking and other additional features.

Popular file manager Total Commander In general, it implements all its widest functionality thanks to its plugins. All its additions are divided into groups according to the tasks performed. During installation, you can usually select the version you need in terms of functionality. Depending on this, certain groups of plugins will or will not be installed.

Plugins can greatly facilitate the use of many programs, so you should not neglect them.

Now that we have figured out what a plugin is, you can safely download them for your applications and get started.

See you soon on the blog!

P.S. Today for dessert - how a newlywed jokes about his wife, if of course it can be called a joke 😳 .

Hello, friends! So I keep writing about how to install this or that plugin on your WordPress, but what is a plugin? I propose today to talk about a plug-in on a computer.

Modern computers are no longer just an electronic computer. This is a complex technique that performs thousands of tasks and has many applications.

Not having special education sometimes you might think that Personal Computer, this harmless home appliance, has a mind of its own. And the rise of the machines from the movie Terminator is not such a fantasy.

Remember, didn’t you argue with the computer when it slowed down or started performing tasks you didn’t understand? I think this happened to everyone. Today I propose to add a little understanding of how a computer works by focusing on the topic of plugins. The word is foreign and what a plug-in is on a computer is not immediately clear.

general information

So, plugin, from the English plug in - “connect”. Is not full-fledged program, but only an addition to it. It adds, activates, or subtracts functions from the main program.

Most often plugins are released for computer games and web browsers. The difference from regular add-ons is that they can be turned on and off at will.
Their usefulness is a controversial point for users. Some people get so used to the previous mode of operation of the program that they do not want to change anything.

Why are add-ons released?

Anyone who has encountered updating programs or searching required plugins, the question arises: why not immediately release a full-fledged program?

In this case, it will be too large and take up computer resources with functions that the user may not need.

The presence of various add-ons allows you to use only those functions that are necessary, avoiding unnecessary information junk, and not only the official developers themselves, but also other programmers who do not want to wait, can improve programs.

The end user has the choice to use an official add-on or a private one. Programmers especially often experiment with games, create new level maps, and increase the variety of weapons and armor.

To understand what a plugin is, look in your web browser's settings. For example, in the Yandex browser in the settings there is an “add-ons” item, there you will find more than 600 different add-ons that have different effects on the operation of the program and the process of your browsing on the Internet.

I took this screenshot on my browser Mozilla

It is worth choosing carefully what to use and what not. Once, I spent several days cleaning my computer, searching for viruses, and even asked a friend to take it apart and see if anything was damaged.

The actions did not bring results, the computer slowed down terribly, and the cause turned out to be a “left” plugin in Mozilla Firefox; as soon as it was removed, everything returned to normal. I'm sure many of you have a similar story.

Installing the plugin

Anyone who has played modern RPG games has encountered this question. The forums present hundreds of add-ons for games and how to install them.

Basically you need to move the file to specific folder in a programme. Some have an individual installation option and with them there is text file“Read me” - read me.

As a rule, everything is briefly described in it, how to install, where to place the files and which file to run.

Today, most programs have an automatic installation form. Where is the list of possible additions, under each of them short description and an on/off button or a checkmark, clicking on which turns on the plugin. After the restart, the new functionality is enabled and you can try out the new products.

I will give an example of how to add a plugin.

Possible problems

Of the possible disadvantages, one has already been described above - under the guise of a plugin it may appear malware, which, instead of improving, slows down the entire computer.

An error may also occur if there are too many add-ons enabled. This happens when they are released without taking into account existing ones, and they begin to conflict with each other.

Some of them are installed automatically, without our knowledge. I recommend periodically checking the list of activated add-ons in your browser to avoid problems and save your nerves and time.

There is also such a thing as plugin crash. This is a critical error, as a result of which the program does not respond to our requests or cannot launch part of the functionality. The solution is to remove and reinstallation additions.

Solving the common error “An unknown plugin is slowing down your computer”

This error can appear in almost all browsers. Before the message appears, you may notice this error yourself: the browser takes a very long time to load pages, the mouse on the screen slows down, and the music starts to jam when you turn on the browser.

To solve the problem, just go to the list of plugins, in different browsers they are hidden under the name “add-ons” or “extensions”.

We analyze the entire list and disable everything except the most necessary, especially pay attention to files with unclear names on English language with no job description.

If it doesn’t help, you need to update the program itself and all connected plugins, restart it. If this does not help, then delete the browser with all the settings and download latest version, install again.
These are simple and effective ways, which do not require special knowledge of computers.

Joke.
- Download the program and then install it.
- Where?
- Here is the link…
- And what should I do with her?
- Follow it!
- How?
- Open the window, paste the address, press enter.
Silence.
- Where are you?
- I'm here.
- Did you do everything?
- Opened it. Cold…

If you even sometimes work with a computer, you have probably heard the word “plugin”. But what is it, in simple terms?

Plugin is an addition to the program that allows you to expand its capabilities. The word “plugin” comes from the English “plug in”, which means “to connect”.

It is quite difficult for developers to initially provide for everything in the program code. necessary functions, therefore, over time, the program has to be modified. If the initial code does not allow the implementation of certain features, then programmers write a special plugin that helps to implement the plan.

The plugin registers with the main application and can use the services it provides. The plugin can also exchange data with other plugins. These “helpers” are most often dependent on the program and are not used separately. The main application can perform its original functions without plugins.

Example. You have a program with which you can view images. This program opens photos the way they were taken, even if it's upside down. The developers initially did not take turns into account. And now, a few years later, they finally decided and released a plugin, by installing which you can flip images by 90, 180 or 270 degrees. Then, a few years later, they released a plugin that allows you to remove red eye from photos.

Quite often, plugins perform the function of supporting other file formats. For example, a video player that was previously unable to open *.mkv files will now be able to do so.

I hope that this article was useful to you and that you understand what a plugin is.