Why Eclipse

Platforms

Everywhere you look in Eclipse you see platforms.  Platforms are collections of related function pulled together to form the base for some domain logic or application -- a platform for tools, banking applications, space mission planning, server-side applications -- whatever fits the domain.  Platforms change the way you develop software because they encourage sharing, reuse and collaboration.

Massive user-base

Eclipse is hugely successful.  Each month there are millions of downloads of the Eclipse IDE from mirrors around the world.  Even more widespread use derives from the broad range of rich client and server-based applications being run every day. Eclipse technology is tried and true.

Broad community

Over 500 committers and 50 companies actively participate in creating software components you can use -- for free.  That equates to millions of dollars of development effort saved. Effort that you can put towards your application rather than reinventing the wheel.

Vendor-neutral

As an open source effort, Eclipse is vendor-neutral. This eliminates vendor lock-in and makes it easier to drive changes in your IT.

Openness

The open and transparent nature of the community allows you to see what is happening and anticipate change rather than simply react. The regular heart-beat of Eclipse releases (last Friday in June every year) gives you a stable base on which to plan.

Getting Started with Eclipse

Building Platforms

Jeff McAffer - October 10, 2008

In this episode of SE-Radio, Martin Lippert talks with Jeff McAffer about building platforms. We start with a brief discussion about what a platform is in contrast to a framework or an application. Drawing from his experiences working on the Eclipse platform for years, Jeff talks with us about how to develop platforms, why developing a platform is different from developing an application, what makes a good platform great, and why API design becomes so extremely important for platforms. He provides us with some insights on how the development process and the client collaboration for platform development could look like and what has and has not worked in the past.

Plug-in Development Tips and Tricks

Chris Aniszczyk - July 11, 2008

Plug-ins are everywhere in Eclipse so come learn about how to develop them! Depending on the audience, for the first half of the talk, I will discuss what a plug-in is and what tooling is provided around developing plug-ins. For the second half, I will discuss tips and tricks that can save you time in developing plug-ins and will also talk about some lesser known, but extremely useful, parts of PDE.

Plugin Development 101

Chris Aniszczyk and Brian Bauman - January 28, 2008

In this webinar, Brian and Chris will walk you through the basics of using the Plug-in Development Environment (PDE). For the first half, they will discuss what a plug-in is and what tooling is provided around developing plug-ins. For the second half, they will discuss tips and tricks that can save you time in developing plug-ins and will also talk about some lesser known, but extremely useful, parts of PDE.