The Java Developer's Guide to Eclipse

In Chapter 33, Swing Interoperability, you learned how to extend Eclipse using an internal launch editor and how to make a Swing editor interact with the Eclipse Platform. Most specifically, you learned how to use the resources framework to keep your editor synchronized with the Eclipse workspace.

Two examples complement Chapter 33:

1. The first example is Windows specific (defined in the project com.ibm.jdg2e.swt_swing.embed.converter). That plug-in defines a "Volume Converter" that demonstrates how to embed an AWT/Swing application.
2. The second example, described below, is defined in the project com.ibm.jdg2e.swing.external.launch. It is a hybrid application that incorporates a Swing editor in a launch-and-edit scenario, which keeps the Eclipse workspace synchronized with the file system changes made by the editor. The launch-and-edit example is provided as an alternative implementation for those platforms where embedding is not yet supported.

The Swing program in this example is launched in a separate window for files of type .abc. The application has a menu bar, toolbar, and an area for editing text. It can open an .abc file, edit, and save the file. The plugin.xml file registers this editor as an external editor on .abc files. After the Swing application saves the file, it calls the plug-in to update the Eclipse workspace.

This example demonstrates :

• The ability to launch a Swing application with other applications.
• A single point of control for all project resources, that is, Eclipse controls .abc files along with other project artifacts.
• How to avoid the need for the user to manually refresh the workspace to update Eclipse metadata after saving in an external editor.

Running the Example

To run the example, import the com.ibm.jdg2e.swing.external.launch into your workpace and then launch the run-time instance of Eclipse (Run > Run As > Eclipse Application).

1. Create a simple project by selecting File > New > Project. Then select Simple and Project. Choose any project name you want.

2. Create an "abc" type file in the project by selecting File > New > File. Name the file something like "file.abc". When you select Finish, Eclipse creates and opens the Swing ABC Editor on the file in a separate window.

   

Roadmap of the Example

1. An editor launcher is used to launch external editors on an IPath input. In this in-process example, the class ABCEditorLauncher launches the ABCEditor.
2. The ABCEditorLauncher class overrides the open method of the IEditorLauncher interface. The expression SwingEditorPlugin.getDefault().getAbcEditor resolves to an instance of the ABCEditor. The ABCEditor.openOnEclipseFile method is called with an IPath instance that represents this editor's input.
3. The ABCEditor saves the instance in a variable that is referenced later when the ABCEditor communicates changes on the file to the editor plug-in.
4. The ABCEditor informs the Eclipse workspace whenever it makes updates to the file system.
5. The class SwingEditorPlugin implements a static method, getDefault, which returns a singleton plug-in instance. The ABCEditor uses the singleton instance to call the method updateWorkspace. The updateWorkspace method requires an IPath input parameter.

Class (All)	Description
ABCEditor	The ABCEditor is a simple example of a Swing application that provides a text editor for files of type .abc.
ABCEditorLauncher	The editor launcher is used to launch external editors on an IPath input with the file extension *.abc.
SwingEditorPlugin	The plug-in proxy maintains and synchronizes the ABCEditor tool updates with Eclipse workspace resources.

Class Diagrams

The classes involved in the example and their relationships are shown in the figure below. Only the key methods are illustrated.

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