Eclipse SDK is an open source platform-independent software framework for delivering what the project calls or is known as "rich-client applications" (as opposed to "thin clients", this means the clients perform heavy-duty work on the host
So far this framework has typically been used to develop IDEs (Integrated Development Environments), such as the highly-regarded Java IDE called Java Development Toolkit (JDT) and compiler that come as part of Eclipse SDK (and which are also used to develop Eclipse itself). However, it can be used for other types of client application as well, see the popular BitTorrent client Azureus for example.
Eclipse SDK was originally developed by IBM, but is now developed by the Eclipse Foundation, an independent not-for-profit consortium of software industry vendors. Many notable software tool vendors have embraced Eclipse as a future framework for their IDEs, among them Borland and IBM Rational.

What's New in This Release:
· Eclipse on Vista
· New Eclipse WPF port
· Quick access
· A new look
Eclipse has a new default presentation. Some of the key features of this presentation are:
· New Minimize/Maximize behavior. The new 'Minimize' behavior is to move the view stack to the nearest trim area, showing a 'Restore' button along with the icons for the views in the stack. When in the trim, clicking on a view icon will show the view as a fast view. Minimized stacks can be drag and dropped to new locations along the workbench trim. Maximization of any stack triggers minimization of all others. Maximizing an editor now maximizes the entire editor area, allowing you to view multiple editors side-by-side while maximized.
· New workbench tab treatments. Workbench tabs have a new color scheme based on your system title background color, and unselected tabs now also have rounded corners to match the appearance of selected tabs. When tabs become crowded, they now maintain their icon and no longer show an ellipsis in or...