…extensions and add-ons?
QThis is something that’s long mystified me. So, can you tell me where and when I might use an extension instead of an add-on, and vice versa? I get that they add features to web browsers, but I’ve never understood the difference. I imagine other readers might be interested in an explanation, too. Thomas Brennan
AIn fact, practically speaking, there’s little difference. We know that many people, use the terms more or less interchangeably. Indeed, we sometimes do so ourselves – but with fair reason, as we’ll explain.
Fundamentally, extensions are little bits of computer code that you can download to add functionality to a web browser. Popular examples include ad blockers, browser-tab managers, weather widgets and so on.
It was Internet Explorer (IE) that introduced people to the concept of extensions in 1999. Ironically, IE struggled to keep up when competing browsers introduced their own support for extensions. Its replacement, Edge, continues to languish in this regard.
Where things get muddy is with Firefox, which in 2004 introduced its own version of extensions. However, the browser categorised them as just one of several different types of ‘add-on’. For example, Firefox also classes themes as ‘add-ons’, even though all they do is change the browser's appearance. Older ‘plug-ins’ are also categorised by Firefox as add-ons.
However, it’s worth noting that plug-ins are an older type of browserupgrade technology that are rapidly being discontinued, due to security flaws. Adobe Flash is perhaps the best known plug-in, but Adobe itself plans to kill it off by the end of this year.
So, to recap, an extension is an extension. However, because Firefox requires users to manage extensions via an interface called ‘Add-ons Manager’, which also offers access to themes and plug-ins, plenty of people slipped into the habit of using ‘add-on’ as a substitute term.
Want to know the difference between technical terms? Email noproblem@ computeractive.co.uk