Microchip Launches Open-source Integrated Development Environment

Microchip Technology Inc. has launched its next-generation, open-source integrated development environment—the MPLAB X IDE—with cross-platform support for Linux, Mac OS and Windows operating systems. A host of high-performance features have been added to the new IDE, including the ability to manage multiple projects and tools with simultaneous debugging, an advanced editor, visual call graphs and code completion.

MPLAB X is unique in the industry with its support for an entire portfolio of 8-, 16- and 32-bit microcontrollers – including all 800+ PIC microcontrollers, dsPIC digital signal controllers and memory devices.

The designers of today's leading-edge embedded applications are demanding an IDE that provides a solid foundation for high-performance, user-friendly and flexible development. They also want it to be compatible with a wide range of development tools for a broad and reliable microcontroller portfolio with easy migration, to decrease the learning curve and protect their tool and code investments. MPLAB X provides a single, unified graphical interface for Microchip and third-party tools, including the MPLAB ICD 3, PICkit 3 and MPLAB REAL ICE debugger/programmers.

"By combining the feature-rich MPLAB X IDE with the high-performance and migration-friendly PIC MCU portfolio, Microchip is taking its industry-leading development support to the next level," said Derek Carlson, Microchip's Vice President of Development Systems. "Now more than ever, Microchip provides embedded designers with the world's most universal, flexible and easy to use microcontroller development platform."

MPLAB X is based on the Oracle-sponsored open-source NetBeans platform, which has an active user community that can contribute a wide range of enhancements and third-party plug-ins. In fact, Microchip customers can take advantage of a host of free NetBeans software components and plug-ins that exist today. Additionally, the NetBeans platform allows MPLAB X users to customize the IDE to suit their individual development needs.

Microchip