An ActiveX control (OCX) is a reusable component built on the Microsoft Component Object Model (COM) that allows you to extend the user interface and functionality of a OpenEdge application. Some controls are similar to ABL (Advanced Business Language) widgets, such as combo boxes and radio sets. There are a wide variety of additional user interface controls that are not available as built-in ABL widgets, such as spin buttons, various dialogs, meters, and picture controls. There are also nongraphical controls for such tasks as communications and time keeping that have no user interface.

These topics describe the mechanics of working with ActiveX controls in ABL. It does not fully explain how to use the OpenEdge AppBuilder to incorporate ActiveX controls in an application. The information in these topics relies on ABL support for COM objects. For information on COM objects in ABL, see Using COM Objects in ABL.