CHRONICLE 6-20-06

HELP LINE

Explorer's Annoyance a legal snag


Q: I just installed Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 Beta 2 and am annoyed with a message that says, "Click to activate and use this control," mainly on videos I'm trying to play. Is there a way to remove this annoyance?


A: What you are seeing is Microsoft's response to a lawsuit it lost to Eolas Technologies after a federal court ruled that Microsoft had infringed on A patent related to plug-in technology used in Internet Explorer.

After Eolas was awarded $521 million in damages, Microsoft decided to alter how the browser implemented ActiveX EMBEDS and OBJECTS on Web pages.

This change affects anyone using Internet Explorer 7, and it also affects anyone using Internet Explorer 6 who has installed the April security update (KB912812).

The reality is that it looks like it will be up to Web designers to change the way that these items are coded. Until then you can switch to Firefox or go back to Explorer 6 and apply the Internet Explorer ActiveX compatibility patch for Mshtml.dll as outlined at support.microsoft.com /kb/917425.

Interestingly enough, Eolas did not go after Firefox, saying that as long as Firefox remains a free and open source program, Eolas would not file suit against it.

Q: When I open up the Web from any source, including shortcuts, it comes up in a reduced size and I have to click on Maximize to get the window to its full size. I have closed the windows in every way possible that I know of including File, Exit. But nothing changes. How can I get my Web pages to open up in full size?

A: Programs like Internet Explorer will open to the same size and placement as they were when they were closed. The gotcha is that clicking the X in the upper right corner of the application does not officially close the program. That just exits the application quickly.

If you want Internet Explorer to open full-size when you start it up, you must first start IE. Then maximize the window. Now click File, then Close. Now restart IE, and it should start up in a full-sized window. If half of the window is off the screen when you start a program, bring the window to the location you want and then click File and then close, and it will reopen in this position the next time.
Changing the size of windows that appear when you click on an Internet link takes a few more steps.
Open Internet Explorer. Now open another instance of Internet Explorer so that you have two running at the same time. In the second one, right-click a link and select Open In New Window. If the new window does not start in full screen, simply resize the window by dragging the edges out to the sides of the screen. Do not use the max button.

Close the first window by selecting File, then Close. Now close the window you just made full size. But close it by holding down the Control key and selecting File, then Close. Do not release the Control key until the window is closed.

Now close the last Internet Explorer window. If you do this correctly, the settings will stick.

You may or may not have to reboot, depending on your operating system.

Write Jay Lee at helpline @chron.com. You can view more questions and answers at the Help Line Blog located at 61ogs.chron.com/helpline. Lee co-hosts the weekly radio show Technology Bytes from 8-10 p.m. Wednesdays on KPFT 90.1 FM in Houston. The program is also available on the Internet at www.geekradio.com. Lee cannot personally answer all reader questions.