Recommended Eclipse reading list
https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/os-ecl-read/
Introduction
This list is compiled from a variety of sources and is intended for anyone who wishes to find centralized reading material about Eclipse. One of the biggest challenges new Eclipse users face is where to find the right information for a task. This article provides a small step in solving that problem.
Overview
Eclipse is an open source community with projects focused on providing an extensible development platform and application frameworks for building software. This article provides links to the latest Eclipse versions, books, articles, and Web sites.
What is Eclipse?Wikipedia provides a great overview of Eclipse and its history.
Back to top
Getting started
If your idea of "Eclipse" is the event when the moon passes between the Earth and Sun or a two-door sports coupe, then this section would be a good start.
Get started now with EclipseThis developerWorks resource provides answers to many common questions regarding Eclipse. It is part of the developerWorks Eclipse top project resources. Eclipse DistilledIf you need a broad yet practical introduction to Eclipse, this book by David Carlson is a great start. It covers the basic Eclipse concepts: views, editors, perspectives, debugging, and more.
Back to top
Development
General development
Java Developer's Guide to EclipseThis book (one of the first about Eclipse) provides a superb introduction to the Eclipse platform from the perspective of a Java™ technology developer. It covers topics ranging from general Java development to plug-in development. Eclipse IDE Pocket GuideThis guide covers the basics of Eclipse in about 100 pages.
Eclipse development
Eclipse Rich Client Platform: Designing, Coding and Packaging Java ApplicationsIf you want to be building, branding and shipping Eclipse RCP-based applications, this should be your first stop. Contributing to Eclipse: Principles, Patterns and Plug-insKent Beck and Erich Gamma give a step-by-step tutorial on how to create an RCP-based application. Eclipse: Building Commercial-Quality Plug-insThis book covers all you need to know about developing an Eclipse RCP-based product from start to finish. Official Eclipse FAQsThis Eclipse.org wiki covers common questions and answers regarding Eclipse development. If you ever wondered how to create your own project nature, this is a simple way to get that question answered. Note: It is based on the content found in The Official Eclipse 3.0 FAQs. Rich Client Tutorial Part 1This series of tutorials from Eclipse.org covers the basics of RCP development. Part 1 covers the absolute basics of what it means to be an RCP application, Part 2 covers user interface-related elements of RCP-based applications, and Part 3 covers creating a really simple RCP-based application.
Web development
The Eclipse project contains a top-level project known as the Web Tools Platform (WTP) that serves as the base for all Web-related tooling.
Pro Eclipse JST: Plug-ins for J2EE DevelopmentThis book covers Eclipse J2EE tooling extensively. Creating Database Web Applications with EclipseThis article explains how to create a simple database Web application using Eclipse WTP. "Developing Web Services -- Eclipse Web Tools Project"This article will teach you how to develop a full-blown Web application using WTP.
Business intelligence
The Eclipse project contains an Eclipse-based reporting system, known as the Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools (BIRT) project, that integrates with your application to produce compelling reports for the Web and PDF. BIRT provides core reporting features like report layout, data access, and scripting.
"Extract database information using Eclipse and BIRT V2.0"This tutorial discusses using BIRT in the context of designing dynamic reports, charts, and templates. Integrating and Extending BIRTConvinced you want to use BIRT in your application? This book can help you integrate and customize BIRT in anything from Web applications to stand-alone rich-client applications. BIRT: A Field Guide to ReportingStart here to learn about BIRT and how to use it.
Modeling
The Eclipse project has excellent modeling-related technologies. One is the Eclipse Modeling Framework (EMF). EMF helps you rapidly turn models into efficient, correct, and easily customizable Java code. And the Graphical Modeling Framework (GMF) provides the tooling to generate a fully functional graphical editor from your EMF model (and more).
Eclipse Modeling FrameworkThis book is the EMF Holy Grail. Start your EMF adventure here. "Model with the Eclipse Modeling Framework, Part 1"This series covers various facets of working with EMF. Part 1 discusses how to generate code from your model; Part 2 discusses EMF's code-generation component known as Java Emitter Templates (JET); and Part 3 discusses EMF's code-generation component known as JMerge, which can be used to customize the output of JET templates. "Discover the Eclipse Modeling Framework (EMF) and its Dynamic Capabilities"Read this article to learn how to manipulate your EMF model dynamically. GMF Tutorial, Part 1This series of tutorials provides a good overview of GMF. Part 1 covers the development of a sample graphical editor from start to finish and Part 2 covers advanced aspects of the GMF generation and runtime frameworks. Introducing the GMF RuntimeGet an introduction to the runtime that powers all GMF-based editors.
Debugging and profiling
In Eclipse, there is a top-level project known as the Test and Performance Tools Platform (TPTP), which is a universal platform for test and performance tools.
"Introduction: Eclipse Test and Performance Tools Platform"This tutorial covers the basics of testing and profiling using TPTP. "Eclipse Test and Performance Tools Platform"This series of tutorials covers basic usage of TPTP. Part 1 discusses the basics of testing, profiling, and monitoring applications; and Part 2 discusses collecting and analyzing log files. Java Application Profiling Using TPTPThis article covers an example application of TPTP that involves profiling a Java application.
User interface development
Eclipse is built on top of the Standard Widget Toolkit (SWT), which provides access to the user-interface facilities of the operating systems on which it is implemented (and is responsible for Eclipse's snazzy user interface). Eclipse also has the Graphical Editing Framework (GEF), which is a tool built on top of SWT to allow for the rapid creation of graphical editors. Furthermore, Eclipse has the Visual Editor Project (VEP), which serves as a framework to create GUI builders.
SWT: The Standard Widget Toolkit, Volume 1This book covers SWT really well and is written by SWT committers. SWT: A Developer's NotebookRead this for a concise guide to SWT with concrete examples (hardly any fluff). SWT/JFace in ActionThis book gives a great overview of SWT and JFace. As a bonus, there is excellent section about GEF in the appendix. The Definitive Guide to SWT and JFaceRead this for in-depth coverage of using SWT and JFace in your applications. Creating JFace WizardsLearn about implementing wizards and contributing them to the Eclipse workbench. Eclipse Forms: Rich UI for the Rich ClientFind out about Eclipse Forms, which is a thin graphics toolkit implemented on top of SWT. Using OpenGL with SWTFind out how to use OpenGL in your SWT applications. Extending The Visual Editor: Enabling support for a custom widgetRead this to find out how to extend the Visual Editor project to support a custom widget. "Create an Eclipse game plug-in"This series of tutorials goes in-depth in explaining how to create a game using Eclipse. Part 1 covers the basics of Eclipse and SWT, Part 2 covers more advanced aspects of SWT/OpenGL to bring your game to life, and Part 3 covers adding more physics to your game, such as collision detection. "A gentle introduction to SWT and JFace"Read through this series of articles to learn how to create simple Standard Widget Toolkit (SWT) applications using Java technology, Eclipse, and the SWT and JFace libraries.
Back to top
Community
Mailing lists
Eclipse mailing listsMailing lists are a good source of information regarding subject-specific needs. Note: Mailing lists are primarily used by Eclipse committers, and it is recommended to use the Eclipse newsgroups to post questions.
Newsgroups
Eclipse newsgroupsThis is the most useful resource for Eclipse questions. It contains a veritable tome of information that should be searched by every Eclipse developer.
Wiki
Official Eclipse wikiThe Eclipse wiki contains information about projects posted by Eclipse committers.
News
Planet EclipsePlanet Eclipse is a window into the world, work, and lives of Eclipse hackers and contributors. EclipseZoneThis is an active site that contains up-to-date information regarding Eclipse happenings.
Blogs
Wayne BeatonWayne Beaton is the Eclipse Foundation's Eclipse evangelist. John GrahamJohn Graham is the PMC chair for the Eclipse Data Tools Platform (DTP) project. Kim HorneKim Horne is an Eclipse committer on the Eclipse Platform. Wassim MelhemWassim Melhem is the lead of the Plug-in Development Environment (PDE) project. Mike MilinkovichMike Milinkovich is the executive director of the Eclipse Foundation. Doug SchaeferDoug Schaefer is the lead of Eclipse's C/C++ Tools project (CDT). Michael ScharfMichael Scharf is a member of the Eclipse architecture council. Tim WagnerTim Wagner leads the Web Tools Platform (WTP) project at Eclipse.
Chat
IRCIRC is a great tool to get instant help from the Eclipse community.
Introduction
This list is compiled from a variety of sources and is intended for anyone who wishes to find centralized reading material about Eclipse. One of the biggest challenges new Eclipse users face is where to find the right information for a task. This article provides a small step in solving that problem.
Overview
Eclipse is an open source community with projects focused on providing an extensible development platform and application frameworks for building software. This article provides links to the latest Eclipse versions, books, articles, and Web sites.
What is Eclipse?Wikipedia provides a great overview of Eclipse and its history.
Back to top
Getting started
If your idea of "Eclipse" is the event when the moon passes between the Earth and Sun or a two-door sports coupe, then this section would be a good start.
Get started now with EclipseThis developerWorks resource provides answers to many common questions regarding Eclipse. It is part of the developerWorks Eclipse top project resources. Eclipse DistilledIf you need a broad yet practical introduction to Eclipse, this book by David Carlson is a great start. It covers the basic Eclipse concepts: views, editors, perspectives, debugging, and more.
Back to top
Development
General development
Java Developer's Guide to EclipseThis book (one of the first about Eclipse) provides a superb introduction to the Eclipse platform from the perspective of a Java™ technology developer. It covers topics ranging from general Java development to plug-in development. Eclipse IDE Pocket GuideThis guide covers the basics of Eclipse in about 100 pages.
Eclipse development
Eclipse Rich Client Platform: Designing, Coding and Packaging Java ApplicationsIf you want to be building, branding and shipping Eclipse RCP-based applications, this should be your first stop. Contributing to Eclipse: Principles, Patterns and Plug-insKent Beck and Erich Gamma give a step-by-step tutorial on how to create an RCP-based application. Eclipse: Building Commercial-Quality Plug-insThis book covers all you need to know about developing an Eclipse RCP-based product from start to finish. Official Eclipse FAQsThis Eclipse.org wiki covers common questions and answers regarding Eclipse development. If you ever wondered how to create your own project nature, this is a simple way to get that question answered. Note: It is based on the content found in The Official Eclipse 3.0 FAQs. Rich Client Tutorial Part 1This series of tutorials from Eclipse.org covers the basics of RCP development. Part 1 covers the absolute basics of what it means to be an RCP application, Part 2 covers user interface-related elements of RCP-based applications, and Part 3 covers creating a really simple RCP-based application.
Web development
The Eclipse project contains a top-level project known as the Web Tools Platform (WTP) that serves as the base for all Web-related tooling.
Pro Eclipse JST: Plug-ins for J2EE DevelopmentThis book covers Eclipse J2EE tooling extensively. Creating Database Web Applications with EclipseThis article explains how to create a simple database Web application using Eclipse WTP. "Developing Web Services -- Eclipse Web Tools Project"This article will teach you how to develop a full-blown Web application using WTP.
Business intelligence
The Eclipse project contains an Eclipse-based reporting system, known as the Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools (BIRT) project, that integrates with your application to produce compelling reports for the Web and PDF. BIRT provides core reporting features like report layout, data access, and scripting.
"Extract database information using Eclipse and BIRT V2.0"This tutorial discusses using BIRT in the context of designing dynamic reports, charts, and templates. Integrating and Extending BIRTConvinced you want to use BIRT in your application? This book can help you integrate and customize BIRT in anything from Web applications to stand-alone rich-client applications. BIRT: A Field Guide to ReportingStart here to learn about BIRT and how to use it.
Modeling
The Eclipse project has excellent modeling-related technologies. One is the Eclipse Modeling Framework (EMF). EMF helps you rapidly turn models into efficient, correct, and easily customizable Java code. And the Graphical Modeling Framework (GMF) provides the tooling to generate a fully functional graphical editor from your EMF model (and more).
Eclipse Modeling FrameworkThis book is the EMF Holy Grail. Start your EMF adventure here. "Model with the Eclipse Modeling Framework, Part 1"This series covers various facets of working with EMF. Part 1 discusses how to generate code from your model; Part 2 discusses EMF's code-generation component known as Java Emitter Templates (JET); and Part 3 discusses EMF's code-generation component known as JMerge, which can be used to customize the output of JET templates. "Discover the Eclipse Modeling Framework (EMF) and its Dynamic Capabilities"Read this article to learn how to manipulate your EMF model dynamically. GMF Tutorial, Part 1This series of tutorials provides a good overview of GMF. Part 1 covers the development of a sample graphical editor from start to finish and Part 2 covers advanced aspects of the GMF generation and runtime frameworks. Introducing the GMF RuntimeGet an introduction to the runtime that powers all GMF-based editors.
Debugging and profiling
In Eclipse, there is a top-level project known as the Test and Performance Tools Platform (TPTP), which is a universal platform for test and performance tools.
"Introduction: Eclipse Test and Performance Tools Platform"This tutorial covers the basics of testing and profiling using TPTP. "Eclipse Test and Performance Tools Platform"This series of tutorials covers basic usage of TPTP. Part 1 discusses the basics of testing, profiling, and monitoring applications; and Part 2 discusses collecting and analyzing log files. Java Application Profiling Using TPTPThis article covers an example application of TPTP that involves profiling a Java application.
User interface development
Eclipse is built on top of the Standard Widget Toolkit (SWT), which provides access to the user-interface facilities of the operating systems on which it is implemented (and is responsible for Eclipse's snazzy user interface). Eclipse also has the Graphical Editing Framework (GEF), which is a tool built on top of SWT to allow for the rapid creation of graphical editors. Furthermore, Eclipse has the Visual Editor Project (VEP), which serves as a framework to create GUI builders.
SWT: The Standard Widget Toolkit, Volume 1This book covers SWT really well and is written by SWT committers. SWT: A Developer's NotebookRead this for a concise guide to SWT with concrete examples (hardly any fluff). SWT/JFace in ActionThis book gives a great overview of SWT and JFace. As a bonus, there is excellent section about GEF in the appendix. The Definitive Guide to SWT and JFaceRead this for in-depth coverage of using SWT and JFace in your applications. Creating JFace WizardsLearn about implementing wizards and contributing them to the Eclipse workbench. Eclipse Forms: Rich UI for the Rich ClientFind out about Eclipse Forms, which is a thin graphics toolkit implemented on top of SWT. Using OpenGL with SWTFind out how to use OpenGL in your SWT applications. Extending The Visual Editor: Enabling support for a custom widgetRead this to find out how to extend the Visual Editor project to support a custom widget. "Create an Eclipse game plug-in"This series of tutorials goes in-depth in explaining how to create a game using Eclipse. Part 1 covers the basics of Eclipse and SWT, Part 2 covers more advanced aspects of SWT/OpenGL to bring your game to life, and Part 3 covers adding more physics to your game, such as collision detection. "A gentle introduction to SWT and JFace"Read through this series of articles to learn how to create simple Standard Widget Toolkit (SWT) applications using Java technology, Eclipse, and the SWT and JFace libraries.
Back to top
Community
Mailing lists
Eclipse mailing listsMailing lists are a good source of information regarding subject-specific needs. Note: Mailing lists are primarily used by Eclipse committers, and it is recommended to use the Eclipse newsgroups to post questions.
Newsgroups
Eclipse newsgroupsThis is the most useful resource for Eclipse questions. It contains a veritable tome of information that should be searched by every Eclipse developer.
Wiki
Official Eclipse wikiThe Eclipse wiki contains information about projects posted by Eclipse committers.
News
Planet EclipsePlanet Eclipse is a window into the world, work, and lives of Eclipse hackers and contributors. EclipseZoneThis is an active site that contains up-to-date information regarding Eclipse happenings.
Blogs
Wayne BeatonWayne Beaton is the Eclipse Foundation's Eclipse evangelist. John GrahamJohn Graham is the PMC chair for the Eclipse Data Tools Platform (DTP) project. Kim HorneKim Horne is an Eclipse committer on the Eclipse Platform. Wassim MelhemWassim Melhem is the lead of the Plug-in Development Environment (PDE) project. Mike MilinkovichMike Milinkovich is the executive director of the Eclipse Foundation. Doug SchaeferDoug Schaefer is the lead of Eclipse's C/C++ Tools project (CDT). Michael ScharfMichael Scharf is a member of the Eclipse architecture council. Tim WagnerTim Wagner leads the Web Tools Platform (WTP) project at Eclipse.
Chat
IRCIRC is a great tool to get instant help from the Eclipse community.