Eclipse, a platform for building applications, was originally aimed at Web

application and image manipulation. With the release of Eclipse 3.0 there has

been a shift to the use of Eclipse as a Rich Client Platform (RCP). In other

words, using Eclipse as a base for everyday generic applications from media

players to productivity and desktop applications. Thinking of Eclipse as not

just an IDE but a platform for all application building is an evolution for the

platform and significantly extends its reach to developers. In this book the

designers of Eclipse as an RCP introduces the reader to the RCP concept and

walks them through a set of scenarios and examples using Eclipse to solve real

world, application problems. This will appeal to all developers who want to

develop and deploy world-class applications with rich, native GUIs.

Development areas that are already using Eclipse RCP include bio-medical,

embedded technology (handhelds, etc), enterprise and productivity applications

and banking.

Written by the leaders of the Eclipse RCP project, this is first and ONLY book on Eclipse Rich Client Platform!

° Up to date with the latest version of Eclipse--Eclipse 3.1

° Covers the basic building blocks of Eclipse RCP and their use in building realistic, world-class applications

° Metagroup declares Eclipse "...definitely the dominant Java tools platform"

Foreword by John Weigand.

Foreword by Jeff Norris.

Acknowledgments.

Preface.

I. INTRODUCTION.

1. Eclipse as a Rich Client Platform.

2. Eclipse RCP Concepts.

II. RCP BY EXAMPLE.

3. Tutorial Introduction.

4. The Hyperbola Application.

5. Starting the Hyperbola Prototype.

6. Adding Actions.

7. Adding a Chat Editor.

8. Branding Hyperbola.

9. Packaging Hyperbola.

10. Messaging Support.

11. Adding a Login Dialog.

12. Adding Key Bindings.

13. Adding Help.

14. Adding Update.

III. THE WORKBENCH.

15. Workbench Advisors.

16. Perspectives, Views, and Editors.

17. Actions.

18. Customizing Workbench Windows.

19. Customizing the Presentation of Views and Editors.

IV. DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES.

20. Integrating Code Libraries.

21. Installing and Updating Plug-ins.

22. Dynamic Plug-ins.

23. RCP Everywhere.

24. Building Hyperbola.

25. The Last Mile.

V. REFERENCE.

26. OSGi Essentials.

27. Eclipse.org Plug-ins.

Index.

Java -- Intermediate / Advanced Programming  [PTG: AW PROFESSIONAL]   (Computer Science)

Jeff McAffer leads the Eclipse RCP and Runtime teams and is one of the Eclipse Platform's original architects and committers. Prior to his work at IBM's Ottawa Software Lab, he was a developer at Object Technology International focusing on areas such as distributed/parallel OO computing, expert systems, and meta-level architectures. Jeff holds a Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo.

Jean-Michel Lemieux has been a committer on the Eclipse team and CVS component since its inception. Before joining IBM's Ottawa Software Lab to work on Eclipse, Jean-Michel built real-time SS7 monitoring systems and real-time modeling tools.

© Copyright Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Build Powerful, Cross-Platform Rich Client Applications

Eclipse is more than a state-of-the-art IDE: its Rich Client Platform (RCP) plug-ins form an outstanding foundation for any desktop application, from chat applications to enterprise software front-ends. In Eclipse Rich Client Platform, two leaders of the Eclipse RCP project show exactly how to leverage Eclipse for rapid, efficient, cross-platform desktop development.

In addition to explaining the power of Eclipse as a desktop application development platform, the authors walk step-by-step through developing a fully featured, branded RCP application. They introduce a wide range of techniques, including developing pluggable and dynamically extensible systems, using third-party code libraries, and packaging applications for diverse environments. You'll build, refine, and refactor a complete prototype; customize the user interface; add Help and Update features; and build, brand, and ship the finished software.

• For every Java developer, regardless of previous Eclipse experience

• Thoroughly covers Eclipse 3.1's new RCP features and its extensive new tools for designing, coding, and packaging RCP applications

• Presents techniques for branding and customizing the look and feel of RCP applications

• Shows how to overcome the challenges and "rough edges" of RCP development

• Discusses the similarities and differences between RCP and conventional plug-in development

• Includes an overview of OSGi, the base execution framework for Eclipse

If you want to develop and deploy world-class Java applications with rich, native GUIs, and use Eclipse RCP—get this book.

CD-ROM contains the Eclipse 3.1 SDK, Eclipse 3.1 RCP SDK, and Eclipse 3.1 RCP Delta Pack appropriate for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X. It also contains all the code samples developed in the book.

© Copyright Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

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