In computing, a plugin is used for different software like browser, word processor, web application, etc in order to provide an extra feature. Plugins can be also named as an add-on, extension which have similar meanings and usage. Generally, plugins are related to web browsers like Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, Safari, Microsoft Edge, etc.
在计算中，插件用于不同的软件，例如浏览器，文字处理器，Web应用程序等，以提供额外的功能。 插件也可以被命名为插件，扩展名具有相似的含义和用法。 通常，插件与网络浏览器(例如Google Chrome，Mozilla Firefox，Opera，Safari，Microsoft Edge等)相关。
插件或附加组件或扩展 (Plugin or Add-on or Extension)
Plugin and Add-on are terms used to describe some extra functionality to existing software. Extensions are similar but generally provide more and very extra functionality to existing software. Mozilla Firefox names Add-on on the other side Google Chrome names Plugin. But in general plugins, addon and extension are used for the same meaning.
插件和加载项是用于描述现有软件的某些额外功能的术语。 扩展是相似的，但通常会为现有软件提供更多和非常额外的功能。 Mozilla Firefox在另一端将Add-on命名为Google Chrome，将其命名为Plugin。 但是在一般的插件中，插件和扩展名具有相同的含义。
插件目的和示例 (Plugin Purpose and Examples)
Plugins provide different purpose to the existing software of applications. Here we will list some of their purposes and examples.
插件为应用程序的现有软件提供了不同的用途。 在这里，我们将列出它们的一些目的和示例。
- Enable 3rd party access to read, edit, save, copy 启用第三方访问权限以读取，编辑，保存，复制
- Adding new features which do not exist in the original software添加原始软件中不存在的新功能
- More detailed configuration about the software有关该软件的更详细的配置
- Increase the performance of the given software提高给定软件的性能
- Add extra services to the existing software向现有软件添加额外的服务
插件如何工作？(How do Plugins work?)
As an external entity, the plugins need to work with the main software. Plugins need very clear standardized software interfaces in or to work properly. In the following diagram, we can see a simple architecture about the plugin. Plugins are managed by the plugin manager but in order to work use host application services. In order to make plugins work properly, the different versions of the application should provide the same services in the same manner.
作为外部实体，插件需要与主软件一起使用。 插件需要非常清晰的标准化软件接口，才能正常工作。 在下图中，我们可以看到有关插件的简单体系结构。 插件由插件管理器管理，但是为了正常工作，请使用主机应用程序服务。 为了使插件正常工作，不同版本的应用程序应以相同的方式提供相同的服务。
热门插件 (Popular Plugins)
We all use different plugins in our daily life which creates value for us. There are some plugins that are very popular and known among users. We will list them here which belongs to different software.
我们在日常生活中都使用不同的插件，这些插件可以为我们创造价值。 有一些非常受用户欢迎的插件。 我们将在这里列出它们属于不同的软件。
- Adobe Flash Player Adobe Flash Player
- Java Run-Time Environment Java运行时环境
- Microsoft Silverlight微软Silverlight
- ActiveX ActiveX
Google Chrome插件(Google Chrome Plugins)
Google Chrome names the plugins as Extensions in its jargon. We can list available Chrome plugins from the following URL.
Google Chrome在其行话中将插件命名为“ Extensions 。 我们可以从以下网址列出可用的Chrome插件。
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/category/extensions?hl=en
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/category/extensions?hl=zh_CN
Mozilla Firefox插件(Mozilla Firefox Plugins)
Mozilla Firefox also calls the plugins as extensions where they can be listed with the following URL.
Mozilla Firefox还将这些插件称为扩展名，可以在其中使用以下URL列出它们。
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/extensions/
https://addons.mozilla.org/zh-CN/firefox/extensions/
WordPress插件(WordPress Plugins)
WordPress is a popular CMS which is used by a lot of people. It also provides a big collection of plugins for different purposes. We can list and search these plugins from the following URL.
WordPress是一种流行的CMS，很多人都在使用它。 它还提供了用于不同目的的大量插件。 我们可以从以下URL列出并搜索这些插件。
https://wordpress.org/plugins/
https://wordpress.org/plugins/