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Tools of the trade, Part 1

Discover the world of Java tools by exploring JCreator

By Jeff Friesen, JavaWorld.com, 11/01/02

Page 2 of 6

JCreator 2.5, which was written in C++ and works exclusively on Windows platforms, is the latest version and comes in two editions (at the time of this writing): limited edition (LE) and professional (PRO). JCreator 2.5 LE is freeware; however, it lacks certain features like code templates and an interface to a debugger. If you want those and other features, you must register (that is, pay for) your copy of the JCreator 2.5 PRO shareware (try before you buy) edition. Apart from a few missing features, JCreator 2.5 LE is basically identical to JCreator 2.5 PRO.

Create a workspace with JCreator

After installing JCreator, double-click its desktop icon. The resulting graphical user interface (GUI) shows toolbars (where the topmost toolbar serves as a menu bar), a status bar, a Tip of the Day dialog box, and a window collection that visibly manifests JCreator's workspace—a directory whose subdirectories identify a project and zero or more subprojects (that is, packages). Furthermore, the workspace directory contains a .jcw file that stores information on the workspace's project and subprojects. Figure 1 illustrates JCreator's GUI.

Figure 1 reveals two important workspace windows:

• The leftmost window, which JCreator names the FileView window, identifies the current workspace along with the current workspace's project and any subprojects. That window displays No workspace loaded when no current workspace exists. Either create a new workspace by selecting New from the File menu (or press the Ctrl and N keys simultaneously) or open an existing workspace by selecting Open Workspace from the File menu.
• Below FileView, you see a window with a series of tabs. That window lets you view project build information, messages sent to a program's standard output, debugging information, and search results.

The above windows are not the only windows that manifest the workspace. There are two other windows to consider: Editor and ClassView.

• Once you open an existing workspace, or create a new workspace with project files, and then load a source file into JCreator's editor, you see an Editor window to the right of FileView. JCreator lets you load multiple files from a project and subprojects into its editor. However, only one file appears in the Editor window. Click one of the tabs below the Editor window to view a different file.
  
  

  Note
  You can also load files from projects in other workspaces. When you do that, those files become external files from the current workspace's perspective, and appear in an External Files folder in the FileView window.

• You can display a ClassView window that reveals class and package information for the current .java file in the current project. Because ClassView does not appear by default, select Toolbars followed by ClassView from the View menu. The ClassView window then appears.

Let's create a workspace named Graphics: Select New from the File menu. (You can also click the New icon on the standard toolbar associated with the menu bar. That icon appears as part of the New menu item.) In response, a New dialog box appears. From that dialog box's Workspaces tab, enter the workspace name, Graphics, in the Workspace name text field. The workspace's directory location appears in the Location text field. You can either keep the default location or choose another.