The first step in developing COBOL in Eclipse is to create a COBOL project. COBOL projects in Eclipse are like other Eclipse projects. A COBOL project is a representation of the source files (with dependencies) and build commands used to create your application or program. You create a project using a wizard and the resulting project is displayed in the COBOL Explorer view, from where you can open your source files.
When you create or open a COBOL project, a COBOL perspective is automatically opened. Perspectives are an Eclipse concept. They present the views, menus and options relevant to your activity. The COBOL perspective shows the COBOL Explorer, Outline and Console views, among others. The perspective is customizable, so you can choose your own views.
Among the other perspectives you can use while you develop COBOL in Eclipse are the Consolidated Tracing Facility (CTF) and the Debug perspectives.