JADE (Java Agent DEvelopment Framework) is a software Framework fully implemented in Java language. It simplifies the implementation of multi-agent systems through a middle-ware that complies with the FIPA specifications and through a set of graphical tools that supports the debugging and deployment phases. The agent platform can be distributed across machines (which not even need to share the same OS) and the configuration can be controlled via a remote GUI.
This project started from my frustration that I could not find any simple, portable XML Parser to use inside my tools (see CONDOR for example). Let's look at the well-known Xerces C++ library: the complete Xerces project is 53 MB! (11 MB compressed in a zipfile). I am currently developping many small tools. I am using XML as standard for all my input /ouput configuration and data files. The source code of my small tools is usually around 600KB.