Setting up the Eclipse Environment
Archi is built upon the Eclipse Rich Client Platform (RCP) version 4.15 (March 2020) and is also developed using the Eclipse Integrated Development Environment (IDE). This section deals with setting up the Eclipse IDE ready for development.
Eclipse runs on top of Java so you need to ensure that you have installed the correct Java Development Kit (JDK). Which distribution you use is up to you, but we recommend AdoptOpenJDK. Make sure you choose the right version for your platform and that you choose JDK 11. Archi does not yet support JDK 12 and greater.
Download the Eclipse IDE version 4.15 (March 2020) from Eclipse Downloads. Ensure that you download a package that is correct for your OS and includes the Git client and support for Eclipse plug-in and RCP (Rich Client Platform) development. If you choose a basic package you will have to manually install additional Eclipse plug-ins (for example, Git integration).
To be honest, the variety of packages available is confusing for a beginner. You need a package that supports both Java and RCP (Rich Client Platform) development. If you're not sure, choose the Eclipse for RCP and RAP Developers package.
Note - I find that the Eclipse packages are not really suited to my needs. I use the Eclipse SDK and manually add Git integration as described below.
- Extract the Eclipse IDE files somewhere on your development machine. This will create an "eclipse" folder (Or an "Eclipse" app on Mac)
- Launch Eclipse from the "eclipse" executable file, or "Eclipse" app on Mac
- You will be asked to select a "Workspace". If you're not sure, select the default and check "Use this as the default and do not ask again"
- Dismiss the Welcome Screen
- Set up Eclipse just how you would like to work with it.
Important! Ensure that you set Eclipse to use the JDK installed on your system, otherwise you won't be able to debug Java code. Set this up in Preferences, Java, Installed JREs and add the JDK.
Note - Archi does not currently support Java 12.
You might want to set up your Eclipse installation with more Eclipse plug-ins. Some Eclipse packages don't include Git integration. If this is the case you can add more plug-ins to your Eclipse IDE.
You can add these plug-ins from within Eclipse itself:
- Choose Help-->Install New Software... to invoke the wizard
- In the "Work with" combo box select
2019-09 - http://download.eclipse.org/releases/2019-09 - Wait for the dialog list to populate (You will see a "Pending..." message. Sometimes this can take a long time...)
- From the list under "Collaboration" select "Git integration for Eclipse"
- Click "Next" and Accept all terms to Finish the wizard.
- Note - sometimes this can take a long time...keep trying...
- The libraries should then be installed and you will need to restart Eclipse
Now you are ready to move onto the next stage, Importing the Code.