Roman Stanek’s Push-Button Thinking

October 26, 1998 - NetBeans, Inc. today announced the release of NetBeans Developer 2.0, one of the first full-featured Java IDEs based on Java Foundation Classes (JFC). The culmination of more than three months of beta testing, the release marks an important new entrant into the Java technology tool arena.

NetBeans Developer 2.0 is a programming tool for software developers who want to design and build powerful, cross-platform applications - on any platform. NetBeans was designed for the Java platform and is one of the first comprehensive IDEs with sophisticated support for visual development of JFC applications. It is an industrial-strength development tool that is easy to learn and intuitive to operate.

“Because NetBeans Developer 2.0 is based on JavaBeans technology, tremendous power is put into the hands of the developer to customize the environment or add components as needed,” commented Dr. Lew Tucker, Director of Developer Relations at Sun Microsystems’ Java Software. “NetBeans is breaking new ground.”

“In addition to breaking new ground in Java technology,” added NetBeans’ Founder/CEO Roman Stanek, “we’re also providing a springboard for software developers to reach that new ground with us. NetBeans is the perfect entry tool for programming in the Java language, and developers who use it will always be at the forefront of the Java technology curve. NetBeans Developer 2.0 is also an entry point to Enterprise computing. Our next product, a team programming platform, will build on this edition and will incorporate numerous additional advanced Java technology features.”

Product overview
NetBeans Developer 2.0 is a full-featured, cross-platform Java technology IDE. NetBeans combines support for all stages of application development including visual design, coding, compiling, and debugging in a comprehensive visual programming package. It runs on all platforms that support JDK(TM) 1.1.x, including Windows 95/98/NT, Linux, Solaris(TM), HP-UX, OS/2, AIX, SGI Irix, Mac and others. Professional developers will appreciate its full complement of features, its wide range of controls, and its flexibility. The IDE is based on JFC and JavaBeans Components, and all parts of the IDE are actually themselves JavaBeans. The result is an IDE where the user can fully customize the interface, modify component behavior and easily add new components. NetBeans is built to be extended and will offer APIs for users to create their own modules.

Christian Gamrat, a development engineer with a French government research agency, praised NetBeans’ stability and ease of use. “I tried it on a Sun UltraSparc and it’s by far the best IDE for Java I’ve seen on this platform. NetBeans Form builder is really great, and the generated code is simple and clean! I also liked the connection wizard, which makes using all sorts of beans very easy. I was able to execute all my small test applications without any problems (the 1st time since I’m in Java land!) I also liked the way you deal with layouts - it’s very intuitive and clean.”

Features
This release of NetBeans Developer 2.0 includes the NetBeans development environment, full documentation in several formats, four tutorials for new NetBeans users, and a bundled JavaBeans component from KL Group, JClass Chart Lite. Users will find complete support for the latest Java technology standards, including JDK(TM) 1.1, JavaBeans, JFC, Serialization, Customizers, Layout Managers, JARs and more.

User Interface:

• Completely customizable menu, toolbar and shortcuts
• Pluggable Look & Feel
• Multiple virtual workspaces

Form Editor:

• JavaBeans-based form editor with support for both AWT and JFC components
• Integrated JFC components
• Full JavaBean support
• Full support for layout managers
• Connection Wizard
• JavaBeans Wizard
• Applet generation support
• Integration of third-party JavaBeans components

Explorer:

• Browse JAR, ZIP FileSystems
• Compile All / Build All - recursively compile all sources in a package
• Java source parsing
• Support for introspection on classes without sources
• Methods and properties from parsing or introspection visually exposed
• User templates

Debugger:

• Integrated visual debugger with multi-thread debugging support
• Support for breakpoints, watches, locales and threads

Editor:

• Text editor with syntax coloring
• Advanced support features - Abbreviations and Dynamic Word Completion

Other:

• Built-in HTML browser
• Support for third-party beans
• International application supported - Unicode enabled
• Built-in HTTP lightweight server
• Y2K compliant

Availability and Pricing
NetBeans Developer 2.0 is available at the company’s web site http://www.netbeans.com/. The introductory price is $145, and users can download a free evaluation copy. NetBeans supports university programs and other educational initiatives by offering Developer 2.0 at no cost for educational and non-commercial use.

Other NetBeans Products
Late in Q4 of 1998, NetBeans, Inc. will release the first beta version of NetBeans Enterprise, a multi-user, multiple-platform edition for team-centric programming efforts that will have support for RMI, JDBC(TM), source control systems, and Enterprise JavaBeans.

Company Overview
NetBeans, Inc. is an emerging growth company that has quickly risen to the forefront of Java technology development. The company is shaping the future of Java applications by taking a completely innovative approach to Java technology.

NetBeans was founded in July 1997, by a team of Java technology developers led by Roman Stanek, formerly the Regional Director of Central and Eastern Europe for Sybase. NetBeans is a privately held company whose investors include Esther Dyson, CEO of EDventure Holdings (see http://www.edventure.com/bios/esther.html).

Note to Editors: Sun, Java, and JavaBeans are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries. JClass Chart Lite is a trademark of KL Group, Inc.. All other brand names are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective holders.