Sams Teach Yourself Internet and Web Basics All in One

Understanding Plug-Ins, Java, and Other Programs in Pages

Up-to-date versions of Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator come pre-equipped to play most (but not all) of the stuff you'll encounter online. So the most important step in preparing to play multimedia is making sure you have the latest version of your browser, so it supports native play of those file types.

When a browser has the built-in capability to play a particular kind of file, the browser is said to include native support for that file type. Anything the browser can do without help from another program is native; any capability in which the browser must call on another program ...