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| Platform architecture |
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| <h1>Platform architecture </h1> |
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| <p>The Eclipse platform is structured around the concept of <b>plug-ins</b>. Plug-ins are |
| structured bundles of code and/or data that contribute functionality to the system. Functionality can be |
| contributed in the form of code libraries (Java classes with public API), platform <b>extensions</b>, |
| or even documentation. Plug-ins can define <b>extension points</b>, well-defined places |
| where other plug-ins can add functionality.</p> |
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| <p>Each subsystem in the platform is itself structured as a set of plug-ins that implement |
| some key function. Some plug-ins add visible features to the platform using the extension model. |
| Others supply class libraries that can be used to implement system extensions.</p> |
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| <p>The Eclipse SDK includes the basic platform plus two major tools that are |
| useful for plug-in development. The Java development tools (JDT) |
| implement a full featured Java development environment. The Plug-in |
| Developer Environment (PDE) adds specialized tools that streamline the |
| development of plug-ins and extensions.</p> |
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| <p>These tools not only serve a useful purpose, but also provide a great example of |
| how new tools can be added to the platform by building plug-ins that extend the |
| system.</p> |
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| <p><img border="0" src="images/sdk-arch.jpg" alt="line drawing of the architecture of the sdk"></p> |
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