An Introduction to Eclipse:Quick Guide

• Part 1: Getting Started with Eclipse

• Part 2: Working with Eclipse

• Useful Online Guides

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Part 1: Getting Started with Eclipse

• Installation & Running

• The User Interface

• Creating a Project

• Creating a Class

• Running a Project

• Navigating Projects

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Installation and Running

• Check java is present and up-to-date: “java -version”

• Download from http://www.java.com/en/download/manual.jsp

• Eclipse Enterprise Edition: http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/

• Unzip and install (win: http://www.7-zip.org/ if needed)

• Run:

• windows: eclipse.exe

• linux / os x: eclipse application

• in the lab: “Root > opt > eclipse-3.7 > eclipse”

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The User Interface

Projects & Classes

Methods & Attributes

Output

Editor

Current Perspective

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Creating a New Project

[right-click]

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Creating a Class

[right-click]

can auto-generate main method stub

right-click on the location / package where you want to place this class

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Running a ProjectIn Eclipse: From command line:

Navigate to ProjectName/bin folder to execute

If your project is packaged then from bin use “java packageName/className” to execute

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Navigating Projects

Selecting an item in one view brings it into focus in the other views

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Part 2: Working with Eclipse

• Creating Packages

• Automatic Code Generation

• Importing System Classes into Projects

• Importing System and User Libraries

• Debugging

• Refactoring

• Creating jars

• Other Useful Features

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Creating Packages1

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By convention these are named in ‘myPackage’ style, just like classes

If you move classes between packages Eclipse will automatically fix references in other classes, and add import statements where needed

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Automatic Code Generation

• Eclipse can automatically generate constructors and some frequently used methods

• With a class open in the Editor view, use the Source menu item as apt

• Hover on a problem notification to see the Quick Fix options:

• select one, then [control+enter] to invoke

• it can fix import declarations and most simple (non runtime) coding errors

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Importing System ClassesProblem: Types ArrayList and Color are not recognised

Solution: Automatically import the classes

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Importing Libraries

For other libraries we select “Add External Jars” then navigate as apt

This adds a JRE System Library1

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Debugging

• Red warnings are items that might cause the program to fail to run

• depends if the code is reachable

• Yellow warnings are advisory:

• attributes, methods and imports that are never used

• non-generic Collection types in use:

• such as ArrayList versus ArrayList<Integer>

• Hover on the warning for info, use Quick-Fix where apt

• Runtime errors can be traced from Console to the guilty line of code in Editor:

• click on the error to see the line in focus

• Visit http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/os-ecbug/ for a guide to the more advanced inbuilt debugging features

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Refactoring

• Eclipse can rename methods and attributes across the whole scope of a project

• [double-click] on a method or attribute name > Refactor > Rename

• Optionally, old methods can be retained and deprecated:

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Creating Jars

• JAR which includes source code (say for sharing work)

• [right-click] on project

• Export > Java > JAR File > Next

• select ‘Export java source files and resources’

• Name the JAR

• Runnable JAR (source code omitted, but includes externally referenced libraries)

• [right-click] on project

• Export > Java > Runnable JAR File > Next

• Select Launch Configuration: ‘Extract External Files’

• Name the JAR

About Launch Configuration:

Extract: external JARs will be extracted and the class files put/mixed together with your class files

Package: external JARs will remain as JARs in the root of your archive

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Other Useful Features

• To highlight the scope of { } parentheses, [double-click] just after the opening parenthesis

• Add // TODO comments to your code to manage work-in-progress

• View the TODO list using the Task view, NOT the Task List view

• Click on an item to bring it to focus in other views

• File Handling: the default working directory for files is the top level directory for the project, NOT the (src) directory containing the source code

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Useful Online Guides

• Lars Vogel’s Eclipse IDE Tutorial

• http://www.vogella.de/articles/Eclipse/article.html

• David Scuse’s guide to Eclipse 3.1

• http://www.cs.umanitoba.ca/~eclipse/Eclipse3-1.pdf

• Debugging with the Eclipse Platform

• http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/os-ecbug/

• Eclipse Current Release User Guide

• http://help.eclipse.org/indigo/index.jsp

• Book/eBook: Eclipse IDE Pocket Guide by Ed Burnette (O’Reilly Publishing)

(which also form the reference materials for this guide)

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