Key Concepts

To work in the IDE, you will need to be familiar with these concepts:

Templates

To begin a new project, first select a template for the kind of object you want to create. The template determines the initial appearance and behavior of the object, thus reducing the amount of time and effort involved in creating your application. Java components, such as Swing and AWT containers, are provided as standard templates. Templates are also provided for applets, classes, dialog boxes, HTML files, text files, and bookmarks. Choose File and chooose  New to select the template you want to use. In addition to choosing a template, you should also provide a name for the new object you are creating and a package name. You can then add that package to the filesystem.

Filesystems

In the IDE, the Filesystem pane shows a hierarchical organization of the Java classpath and its directories. By following each node in the Explorer window down to its lowest level, you can see which objects, classes, methods, or files exist in a particular directory within the classpath. When you work in a particular project, you can go to the Filesystems pane in the Explorer window and expand a filesystem node to view the objects contained within it. Select an item and right-click to view an object's properties, modify them, change the object itself, and more. If you want to work on applications or filesystems created outside of the IDE, you must mount the filesystem as instructed in the section on Filesystems in the IDE.

Modules

The IDE is built entirely from modules, independent pieces of software that are compiled separately. Even features central to the environment, such as the Source Editor, debugger, and Form Editor, are modules. You can expand this modular structure with extensions. View the modules currently installed in your environment by choosing Tools and chooose  Options to open the Options window. Then expand IDE Configuration and chooose  System and select Modules to see the list of modules. Right-click a module and choose Properties from the contextual menu to view or edit properties. Every module in the IDE can be customized to better suit your needs. Modules can also be added or updated by using the Update Center wizard, which can be accessed by choosing Tools and chooose  Update Center.

Projects

When you work in the IDE, you are working on a project, which organizes the files required to produce an applet or an application. When you organize your files into a project, you can operate on them as a whole. For example, when you compile a project, you compile all of the Java source files in it. You create and manage projects using the Project menu in the main window. To view the files in the current project, click the Project tab in the Explorer window. The Project tab is always labeled with the name of the current project.

See also
A Tour of the IDE
Filesystems and the Java Classpath
Managing Objects in the IDE
Configuring the IDE

Legal Notices