Using Java Development Tools

Chapter 3, Using Java Development Tools, provided a comprehensive overview of using the Java Development Tools (JDT) to explore, write, and run Java. We described how to create different kinds of Java elements, how to navigate and search them with the different views, and how to write Java code using code assist, code generation, and refactoring. We covered how different kinds of errors are marked and how to fix errors with quick fix. We also discussed how to set Javadoc locations and view Javadoc. Next we looked in some detail at Java projects and their properties, how these properties impact your projects, and how to use different JREs and reference declarations in other projects and JAR files. The chapter also described editing code templates used in code generation and externalizing strings.

Exercise 2 (found in Part VI) accompanies this chapter. This exercise will hone your skills as a user of the JDT. Even those that know Eclipse can learn a trick or two. So give it a glance, you may be surprised by how much you learn.

If you have Java programming experience with other IDEs, you might consider skipping ahead to Exercise 4, Developing a Simple Web Commerce Application with Eclipse. It is an exercise that puts together many of the individual topics of Part I and applies them to a more comprehensive application, to illustrate a realistic example similar to what you might do every day with Eclipse as part of your work.