NetBeans IDE 6.5 Release Information

The NetBeans IDE is an award-winning Integrated Development Environment available for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Solaris. The NetBeans project consists of an open-source IDE and an application platform which enable developers to rapidly create web, enterprise, desktop, and mobile applications using the Java platform, as well as PHP, JavaScript and Ajax, Ruby and Ruby on Rails, Groovy, and C/C++. It is supported by a vibrant developer community and offers a diverse selection of third-party plugins.

Release Overview

In addition to full support of all Java platforms (Java SE, Java EE, Java ME, and JavaFX), the NetBeans IDE 6.5 is the ideal tool for software development with PHP, Ajax and JavaScript, Groovy and Grails, Ruby and Ruby on Rails, and C/C++. The 6.5 release provides enhanced support for web frameworks (Hibernate, Spring, JSF, JPA), the GlassFish application server, and databases. Additionally it includes a new IDE-wide QuickSearch shortcut, a more user-friendly interface, and automatic Compile on Save.

The NetBeans IDE 6.5.1 bug fix release is a minor update to NetBeans IDE 6.5.

Feature Highlights

PHP

• PHP Editor (Code completion, syntactic and semantic code ighlighting)
• Support for heredoc notation and PHTML
• Debugging using Xdebug
• Generators for MySQL database code snippets

JavaScript and Ajax

• JavaScript Debugging on FireFox & Internet Explorer
• HTTP transaction monitoring
• Improved JavaScript and CSS Editor
• JavaScript Library Manager incl Yahoo UI, Woodstock, jQuery, Dojo, Scriptaculous, Prototype libraries

Java EE & Web Development

• Enhanced support for Spring, Hibernate, JSF, JSF CRUD generator, JPA (Java Persistence API)
• Create RESTful web services from database tables or from JPA entities
• Drag and drop SaaS services into PHP files
• SQL Editor Improvements (code completion, save/recall queries, and more)
• Improved Eclipse project import and synchronization for Java Web projects
• Automatic Deploy on Save

JavaFX

• Create, test, debug, profile, and deploy JavaFX projects
• JavaFX editor with syntax highlighting, source navigation, code completion, code folding, javadoc pop-ups, and error detection.
• Live preview of visual elements
• Code snippet palette for transformations, effects and animations

Groovy and Grails

• Develop pure Groovy apps or use Groovy in Java SE projects
• Groovy editor with code completion, highlighting, and more
• Grails web application framework
• Open existing Grails applications without adding metadata

Ruby and Rails

• New Test Runner interface for displaying test results
• Rake improvements: Rake Runner and a pre-generated Rake file
• Debugger: Conditional breakpoints and catchpoints
• Ruby projects accept JVM options from command line

GlassFish v3 Prelude for Web Development

• Modular, OSGi based architecture
• Small footprint, fast startup and deployment
• Support for scripting, including JRuby

C/C++

• Improved code completion, error highlighting, and semantic highlighting
• Call graph, Memory window
• Remote development
• Packaging of application as tar files, zip files, or SVR4 packages

Java ME

• New project wizard for adding custom components to the Visual Designer Palette
• New SVG UI components in the enhanced SVG Composer enable rich UI design
• New Data Binding Custom Components in the Visual Designer Palette
• Upgraded obfuscation tool to ProGuard 4.2 and test framework to JMUnit 1.1.0

Java Debugger

• New multi-threaded debugging with improved UI and work-flow
• Smart Step Into with method selection right inside expression
• Deadlock detection with visual indication

Java SE

• Automatic Compile on Save
• Improved Eclipse project import and synchronization
• Java Call Hierarchy
• Analyze Javadoc
• Swing GUI Builder can generate simple or fully qualified class names

IDE Tools and Usability

• CamelCase code completion
• Customize formatting settings per project
• One IDE-wide QuickSearch shortcut for files/symbols/types, IDE actions, options, and docs
• Support for Windows UNC paths (shared network folders)

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Learn more at the NetBeans IDE 6.5 New and Noteworthy page. (netbeans official site)

NetBeans IDE 6.5 - Development Simplified (Open Source)

A free, open-source Integrated Development Environment for software developers. You get all the tools you need to create professional desktop, enterprise, web, and mobile applications with the Java language, C/C++, and even dynamic languages such as PHP, JavaScript, Groovy, and Ruby. NetBeans IDE is easy to install and use straight out of the box and runs on many platforms including Windows, Linux, Mac OS X and Solaris.

The NetBeans IDE 6.5 provides several new features and enhancements, such as rich PHP, JavaScript and Ajax editing features, improved support for using the Hibernate web framework and the Java Persistence API, and tighter GlassFish v3 and MySQL integration.

Highlights

Java Desktop Applications

Create professional desktop applications using the NetBeans Java GUI Builder with Swing Application Framework and Beans Binding support.

PHP Development

A fast and light-weight PHP IDE with code completion and quick fixes, integrated FTP and Xdebug, and support for popular Web Services.

Java EE and Web Applications

Build web applications using Ajax, JavaScript, and CSS. Support for frameworks incl. JSF, Struts, Spring and Hibernate. Full set of tools for EJB development.

Ruby and Ruby on Rails Development

Powerful Ruby editor with code completion and debugger, and full support for Ruby on Rails. Includes the JRuby runtime.

Visual Mobile Development

Create, test and debug GUI applications that run on mobile phones, set-top boxes, and PDAs.

C and C++ Development

Full-featured C/C++ editor, debugger, project templates, support for multiple project configurations, remote development, and packaging of completed projects.

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See a quick overview of features on the NetBeans IDE 6.5 Release Page.