Contributing to Eclipse: Principles, Patterns, and Plug-Ins

"Even long-time Eclipse committers will be surprised by the breadth and depth of this book. A must-read for every new Eclipse extender."

--Andre Weinand, Eclipse Committer

Contributing to Eclipse offers

• A quick step-by-step tutorial. Have your first plug-in running in less than an hour.
• An introduction to test-driven plug-in development. Confidently create higher quality plug-ins.
• The Rules of Eclipse. Seamlessly integrate your contributions with the rest of Eclipse.
• A design pattern tour of Eclipse. A cook's tour of Eclipse with patterns.
• A comprehensive tutorial. See all the techniques necessary to write production-quality contributions.

Erich Gamma and Kent Beck introduce you quickly, yet thoroughly, to Eclipse, the emerging environment for software development. Instead of simply walking you through the actions you should take, Contributing to Eclipse, with its many sidebars, essays, and forward pointers, guides you through Eclipse. You will not just do. You will also understand.

Whether you need to get up to speed immediately or want to better understand the design rationale behind Eclipse, Contributing to Eclipse is the Eclipse resource for you.

Source Code

EXAMPLES

A snapshot of all the source code developed throughout this book is available for download here.

Once you have downloaded and unpacked the zip file, please refer to the file cte-source/readme.txt for how to import the code into your Eclipse workspace for browsing.

Download the archive (ZIP, 170K)

Related Article

Eclipse Shines On, Even Without Sun

Sample Chapter(s)

Download the Sample Chapter related to this title.

Index

Download the Index file related to this title.

Foreword

Eclipse is a many-splendored thing. Eclipse is a technology, an extensible platform for tool integration, and a wide range of tools built on that platform. Eclipse is an open source project that delivers this technology. And Eclipse is a community that contributes to the open source project and also produces commercial Eclipse-based tools. The community itself is diverse, ranging from users of Eclipse-based products, to tool writers building extensions, to researchers exploring new ways of using Eclipse.

Eclipse is an ambitious undertaking. It provides a platform that allows diverse tools to interoperate, often in ways that the tool writers did not initially imagine. To make this aim a reality, we use an open, merit-based, collaborative development process--high-quality contributions are accepted from anyone. As the Contribution Rule reminds us, "Everything is a contribution." And with many contributions, the possibilities are endless.

The Eclipse Platform is composed of numerous plug-ins, and if you cast your net more widely, you will discover a plethora of additional plug-ins. Contributing to Eclipse enables you to jump into this expanding ecosystem and become a tool writer yourself. It is a guide through the initial barrier to entry, giving you the tools to explore the Eclipse landscape and venture out on your own. A fully worked example takes you step by step through the evolution of a plug-in--from initial implementation to product-ready software. In addition, this book defines Rules for extending Eclipse, so your plug-ins are "done right." Eclipse-literate readers will appreciate this book too: Its instruction confirms your accumulated understanding and it provides new insights into areas where you are less experienced. Chapters end with forwarding pointers to additional material so you can dive deeper.

These authors know what they are talking about. Erich is the authoritative source on the Java development tooling. In addition to leading this effort, he has been influential in the evolution and maturation of the Eclipse Platform. Kent has a deep understanding of software development processes and he is a master at providing clarity, simplicity, and understanding. Together, they share their experiences with Eclipse and teach us how our own experiences can be successful. I trust you will enjoy this refreshingly practical book while you absorb its instruction on how to immerse yourself into Eclipse.

On a personal note, Erich and I have been collaborating on IDE technology for several years. The previous efforts were educational stepping stones--sometimes not even completed before we moved on to the next iteration. But we kept learning. With Eclipse, we have a technology that will continue to grow and evolve. Eclipse is worth investing in. Put Eclipse to work for you. I have confidence you will find new ways to contribute to Eclipse!

John Wiegand
Eclipse Platform Lead
IBM
September 2003

Table of Contents

Foreword.


Preface.


1. The Big Picture.

I. CIRCLE ZERO: HELLO WORLD.

II. CIRCLE ONE: BASIC PLUG-IN.

III. CIRCLE TWO: THE REST OF THE PLUG-IN.

IV. CIRCLE THREE: PATTERN STORIES.

V. APPENDICES.