Software Update: NetBeans IDE 6.8 Beta

Netbeans IDE is a development environment written in Java to write, compile, debug and deploy programs. It offers support for various programming languages, such as Java, Ruby, C++ and PHP. Using Netbeans IDE requires an installation of Sun’s Java SE Development Kit 5.0 update 19 or later. The development environment is run under a double license namely a combination of cddl 1 and gpl 2. For more information, please refer to this page. The developers have released the first beta version of NetBeans IDE 6.8 with the following announcement:

NetBeans 6.8 Beta Now Available for Download!

The NetBeans team is pleased to announce the availability of NetBeans IDE 6.8 Beta.

• Download NetBeans IDE 6.8 Beta
• Learn More about NetBeans IDE 6.8 Beta

NetBeans IDE 6.8 Beta is the first IDE to offer support for the entire Java EE 6 spec. Highlights include support for JSF 2.0/Facelets, Java Persistence 2.0, EJB 3.1 including using EJBs in web applications, RESTful web services, and GlassFish v3. The IDE’s integration with Project Kenai, a collaborative environment for hosting open-source projects, now offers full support for JIRA and improved instant messenger and issue tracker integration. PHP support has been extended to include the Symfony framework and PHP 5.3. The release also supports the JavaFX SDK 1.2.1, and comes with added features to the IDE’s Maven and database integration, and improvements to the editor and tools for Ruby, Groovy, and C/C++ projects. NetBeans IDE 6.8 Beta is available in English, Brazilian Portuguese, Japanese and Simplified Chinese, as well as in several community-translated languages.

Release Highlights

Java Enterprise Edition 6

• JavaServer Faces 2.0 for web interfaces and the ability to use EJBs in web applications
• Java Persistence JPA 2.0 and RESTful web services support
• Broader use of annotations instead of deployment descriptors
• Deployment, debugging and profiling with GlassFish v3

Java Server Faces 2.0 (Facelets)

• Code completion, error hints, namespace completion, documentation popups, and tag auto-import for Facelets
• Editor support for Facelets libraries, composite components, expression language

JavaFX

• Support for JavaFX SDK 1.2.1
• Improved navigation, code completion, and hints

PHP

• Full PHP 5.3 support
• Symphony Framework support

Kenai.com: Connected Developer

• Full JIRA support
• Improved issue tracker integration

maven

• Improved support for Java EE 6, Groovy, Scala projects
• Customizable dependency exclusion in dependency graph

ruby

• Support for JRuby 1.3.1, Ruby 1.9 debugging, and RSpec 1.2.7
• Improved rename refactoring, type inference, and navigation

C/C++

• Profiling: New tools for I/O Monitoring, Thread Analysis and Race Detection
• Faster synchronization during remote development

The final release of NetBeans IDE 6.8 is planned for December 2009.