Mosaic

computer program

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Andreessen

In Marc Andreessen
…in creating the Web browser Mosaic and who cofounded Netscape Communications Corporation.
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browsers

In browser
…the release in 1993 of Mosaic, which used “point-and-click” graphical manipulations and was the first browser to display both text and images on a single page. The team behind Mosaic created Netscape Navigator, which was optimized for home users browsing at the slow speeds of dial-up modems. Netscape Navigator became…
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Internet

In Internet service provider
…of Illinois made widely available Mosaic, a new type of computer program, known as a browser, that ran on most types of computers and, through its “point-and-click” interface, simplified access, retrieval, and display of files through the Internet. Mosaic incorporated a set of access protocols and display standards originally developed…
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In Internet: Commercial expansion
Mosaic incorporated a set of access protocols and display standards originally developed at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) by Tim Berners-Lee for a new Internet application called the World Wide Web (WWW). In 1994 Netscape Communications Corporation (originally called Mosaic
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Netscape Communications Corp.

In Netscape Communications Corp.: Navigator takes over the Internet
…Illinois, which had trademarked the Mosaic name and designated another company as master licensee for the NCSA Mosaic software. As part of an out-of-court settlement, Mosaic Communications changed its name to Netscape Communications.
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virtual museums

In virtual museum
…collections were used to promote Mosaic, the first graphical Web browser, when it was introduced in 1993. One of the first was EXPO, which originated in 1993 with an online guide to artifacts from the Vatican Library that were on display at the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.…
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In museum: Virtual museums
…collections were used to promote Mosaic, the first graphical Web browser, when it was introduced in 1993. One of the first was EXPO, which originated in 1993 with an online guide to artifacts from the Vatican Library that were on display at the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.…
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World Wide Web

In World Wide Web
…of a Web browser called Mosaic, which was developed in the United States by Marc Andreessen and others at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois and was released in September 1993. Mosaic allowed people using the Web to use the same sort of “point-and-click” graphical…
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DLL

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DLL

computer code file

Also known as: dynamic link library

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Article History

In full:: dynamic link library

Related Topics:: operating system; computer program; file

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DLL, file containing code for commonly used program functions on personal computers (PCs) that run the Microsoft Corporation’s Windows operating system.

Linking is part of the process of creating a computer program in which programmers combine their new program codes with preexisting code libraries (special functions, such as printing a document, that are used often). Static linking, the process traditionally used in many operating systems, puts everything together into the executable program. Dynamic linking, on the other hand, stores code libraries in DLL files. The functions in these files are then accessed by different running programs only when needed. Dynamic linking results in programs that use less memory and disk space and that are easier to upgrade. Without dynamic linking, making changes to part of a code library—for example, a dialog box for saving a file—would mean making changes to every statically linked program that uses it. With dynamic linking, only the DLL needs to be changed.

Despite these advantages, dynamic linking has some trade-offs. Gains in efficiency are sometimes offset by losses in the stability of a program. In the past a newly installed program might occasionally have replaced an existing DLL, which sometimes caused existing programs to crash or behave oddly, a situation programmers call “DLL hell.” To avoid these problems, Windows relies on protected DLLs and Windows file protection (WFP). Protected DLLs are updated only by Microsoft, and if one is replaced by some other source, Windows reverts the DLL back to the original version. An official update can still introduce bugs, though it is unlikely to do so.

computer chip. computer. Hand holding computer chip. Central processing unit (CPU). history and society, science and technology, microchip, microprocessor motherboard computer Circuit Board

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The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Erik Gregersen.