If you’ve created a developer edition account recently (since Winter ’09 launched), you will have noticed a few changes. The org has a shiny new home page, with a cleaned up set of tabs and more. Here’s a picture.

(Click on the image for a larger version).

What’s happening here? Well, a few things:

• Firstly, there’s a new default application. You’ll see it up there in the right hand side corner. It’s called “force.com”
• This new default application has a new default tab (“Start Here”) with an introductory screen.
• All of the old applications and tabs that you are used to, are still there. Simply use the drop down to select a different application, such as Sales or Marketing.

This new home page lets us dynamically change the content, and you can see how by exploring a little. If you go to Setup->Develop->Pages you’ll find the “Start Here” Visualforce page, which is used on the “Start Here” default tab. This has a default controller (startHereController), which grabs some XML from our servers. It does this by making an HTTP request, and parsing the content looking for elements with particular names (sidebar, main, etc.):

About your old DE orgs

They’re still there and are now all on Winter ’09. In other words, you can make use of any Winter ’09 feature in your existing DE org – there’s no need to grab a new one. You can find details (and an FAQ) on the developer edition wiki page.

About the new DE orgs

The new DE org does have changes to the licenses – you now have more licenses out of the box 🙂 You can find details (and an FAQ) on the developer edition wiki page.