The principal difference between ActiveX controls and JavaBeans are that ActiveX controls can be developed in any programming language but executed only on a Windows platform, whereas JavaBeans can be developed only in Java, but can run on any platform.

Comparison on JavaBeans and ActiveX - article 
JavaWorld article (March 1997) on how to determine which component object model best suits your needs.

EarthWeb's JARS Web Site 
Home page for the Java Applet Rating Service from EarthWeb. Features a huge collection of reviewed and rated Java applets in a variety of categories, as well as many resources for Java, JavaScript, JavaBeans, ActiveX, VRML, and Perl.

alphaBeans: JavaBeans from IBM
Offers a collection of downloadable JavaBeans.

The Java Tutorial - A Practical Guide for Programmers
Covers the fundamentals of programming in the Java language as well as information about the Java Development Kit (JDK), JavaBeans, JAR files, and JNI. This tutorial is hosted by Sun Microsystems.

Developer.com
Contains resources, tools, articles, discussion areas, and events of interest to Internet/intranet developers. Directories include: ActiveX, Java, JavaBeans, JavaScript, Microsoft and .NET, open source and VRML.

Java Development Kit and JavaBeans site
Contains the latest news and download link for the Java Development Kit. Also contains information on JavaBeans and links to products and APIs, applets, success stories, news, licensing information, and white papers.

Sun's JavaBeans FAQ
Provides answers to general, technical and administrative questions about JavaBeans.

Sun's JavaBeans home page
Contains news items and announcements, download links, demos, developer resources, tools, event information, and a FAQ for JavaBeans.