A type library can be thought of as a binary version of an IDL (interface Definition Language) file. Visual basic creates a type library when you create a VB server object, thus eliminating the need for an IDL file. A C-like language used to define interfaces and co-classes for COM. Ole View is a Fan Page Domination Review COM utility that reverse-engineers a type library into a readable form of IDL. IDL is used to provide language-independence for COM interfaces so that identical interfaces defined in VB, C++, and Java look the same in IDL even though they look different in the language used for implementation.

Other Types of Type Library

There is also the type library in the system that is used to display the type or font on the screen and printed document. This type or font library is located in the systems registry. Every time a program calls upon the type library top to display the font, the type library looks up the registry to locate the type that has to be displayed. If the type is not present in the library the page displays the default of the closest matching font for that type.