<-- 

 

 

 Set ALLOWTOPICCHANGE = Main.katty1980
 
 Set ALLOWTOPICRENAME = Main.katty1980
 
 
-->

This wiki has moved to http://wiki.netbeans.org

NetBeansDeveloperFAQ^?

http://platform.netbeans.org/

• Indentation Engine

• ProjectVersioning

Interested in Contributing

* VersioningAidTeam

• NetBeansProjectVersioning^?

• Masoud Kalali

• Tip 2...

Impact on layer.xml (the module's NetBeans configuration file):

• A long list of standard actions are listed in the Loaders folder for the specified MIME type, so that the file type has these default actions (such as 'Open' and 'Save') available from the start.
• The MIME resolver is registered in the Services/MIMEResolver folder.
• The dummy template is registered in the Templates/Other folder. This means that when the user opens the New File wizard, the dummy template will be in the Other folder. (You can change the position of the template, as well as, of course, its content.)

Impact on layer.xml (the module's NetBeans configuration file):

• The action is registered in the Actions folder, with a shadow file registered in the Menu/Window folder. For details on shadow files, see What are .shadow files?).
• TopComponentSettings.xml is registered in the Windows2/Components folder.
• TopComponentWstcref.xml is registered in the Windows2/Modes/your-selected-position folder.

Module Development Lifecycle

1. Set up the project. If you're building on top of the NetBeans Platform, you'll need to start with a Module Suite project. Only this project type lets you brand an application. If you use the Module Suite project, you can use the IDE to specify a splash screen, and create an executable, ZIP file, and JNLP application. If you're building a NetBeans module, don't use the Module Suite project, except if you need to include JAR files—you put these on your classpath by wrapping them in Library Wrapper Module projects and attaching them to a Module Suite project, along with the NetBeans Module project that provides the module's code.
2. Let the IDE generate lots of files and code for you. Use the templates listed in the table above to very quickly create the basis of your module's code.
3. Code the module or application. Here are some ideas on 'what to do when I am stuck':
   • Download the NetBeans sources and learn from them. Alternatively, you can browse the sources on-line, i.e., without having to download them.
   • Use NetBeans API JavaDoc and Source inside the IDE. Download the NetBeans sources and get the JavaDoc from the Update Center. Attach both of them to the NetBeans Platform Manager (available under the Tools menu). Now you can access the JavaDoc while typing. When you hold down the Ctrl key and move your mouse over an identifier (such as TopComponent in a class declaration for classes that subclass TopComponent) a hyperlink appears, which you can click, and when the hyperlink is clicked, the source file opens and you can read the source to understand what you're supposed to be doing with it.
   • Refer to the tutorials and downloadable sample code. The FeedReader sample is included in the New Project wizard in the Samples folder. In addition, many typical scenarios are outlined in tutorials here. Each tutorial contains a link to a ZIP file containing the sample discussed in the tutorial.
   • Join the mailing list. Share your expriences with others, ask questions, and discuss your issues at http://openide.netbeans.org/.
4. Build and run. Try out the module or application by building and running it. With modules, you can try them out in the IDE that you're currently using or in another instance of the same IDE. The latter means that the IDE starts up again and that your module is loaded in this newly-started IDE. This is safer.
5. Test, debug, and profile. Use the NetBeans debugger, the NetBeans Profiler, and NetBeans JUnit file templates.
6. Brand and distribute. Branding is only applicable to Module Suite projects. Right-click the Module Suite Project node and choose Properties. In the Project Properties dialog box, define a splash screen, application title, progress bar, etc. Distribute NetBeans modules in binary form as NBM files. (Use the Create NBM menu item on the module's project node.) Recipients can install your NBM file through the Update Center. Distribute applications as JNLP applications (i.e., web startable) or ZIP distributions (these distributions include an .exe file created by the IDE). (Use Build JNLP or Build ZIP distribution on the Module Suite's project node.)

• "Hello World" for NetBeans module developers: NetBeans IDE 5.0 Plug-in Module Quick Start Guide
• "Hello World" for rich-client application developers: NetBeans IDE 5.0 Paint App Tutorial

NetBeans APIs

The general repository for commonly used API terms is the NetBeansDeveloperFAQ^?. Here is a list of entry points to the most common of the commonly used terms:

(Note that all tutorials listed below include downloadable source code, which means that you can look at examples of how to extend the files created by the wizards.)

• If you want to know what a folder or file is called in the layer file, (because it is not the DISPLAY name but the ORIGINAL name that determines the name of the folder or file), just delete it in the "this layer in context node" (nothing scary will happen, there'll just be a _hidden flag in your layer xml) and then, because of the layer.xml's hidden flag, you'll see what the folder or file is really called.

Layer Files: What Are They For and How Are They Used?

(coming soon)

• How to create a wizard

NetBeans IDE 5.0 provides a set of wizards that create the basic files for various APIs. For example, when you want to implement the TopComponent class, use the New Window Component wizard to get started. After using the Window Component wizard, you have a bunch of files and sample code that you extend to build your module. Below, where an API is supported by a wizard, the wizard is listed, together with a list of files that is generated, as well as a related tutorial (with sample code) that illustrates a typical scenario.

Module Development Lifecycle: From Building to Branding

End Products: ZIP, JNLP, NBM, and Other Acronyms

• Identifier hyperlink
• Web framework support
• New File wizard

A NetBeans module is a Java archive (JAR) file which contains Java classes written to interact with the NetBeans APIs. A module identifies itself as a module by an entry in its MANIFEST.MF file. NetBeans modules are packaged as NBM files (.nbm extension) for non-installer distribution, usually via the NetBeans Update Center. NetBeans modules are written with one of two aims in mind:

How Do the APIs Relate to Each Other?

• Introduction to the NetBeans Idioms and Infrastructure

Templates for API Extensions in NetBeans IDE 5.0

(coming soon)

Module Development Lifecycle in NetBeans IDE 5.0

(coming soon)

What Problems Have Others Encountered and How Have They Overcome Them?

• Sandip Chitale of Sun Java Studio Creator
• Paul Gibson of MultiTrode Pty Ltd and Chris Palmer of Kcc Tech Pty Ltd

• Don't just start typing code. Use the templates in IDE 5.0 as a starting point -- lots of files and sample code gets generated for you. After that, build your module on top of the generated files...

• Tip 2...

• Tip 3...

Ideas for other tutorials:

Basic NetBeans Module Development Terms

What Can I Do with NetBeans Module Development?

• Overview of some modules and applications that have been built.
• Examples of applications built on the NetBeans Platform.
• Catalogue of NetBeans Plug-ins.

Do You Have a "Hello World"?

• NetBeans IDE 5.0 Plug-in Module Quick Start Guide

Netbeans APIs

Nebeans provides a rich set of APIs for extending the IDE and for building on top of the NetBeans Platform. The hardest part of understanding the APIs is probably to know what functionality each API provides. Below is a table listing the most common APIs, with a brief introduction and related tutorials.

Basic API Terms

• NBM. What is an NBM?
• FileObject. What is a FileObject?
• Filesystem. What is a Filesystem?
• DataObject. What is a DataObject?
• Dataloader. What is a DataLoader?
• Node. What is a Node?
• Cookie. ...
• Action. ...
• Lookup. What is a Lookup?
• ...
• ...

NetBeansDeveloperFAQ^?

Versioning

NetBeans Module & Platform Development Work-in-Progress Page

Understanding NetBeans Module Development

• Extending the IDE. You can very easily extend the IDE's functionality with new features. For example, you can write modules that make your favorite cutting-edge technologies available to the IDE. Or, if you miss some functionality in the IDE, you can add it yourself, by writing a module that provides the desired functionality.
• Building a standalone rich-client application. You can use the core of the IDE as a platform on top of which you develop rich client applications. The core of the IDE is a separate NetBeans product called the NetBeans Platform. You can save a lot of development time by reusing features readily available in the NetBeans Platform.

Basic Terms

• NetBeans Platform. This the core of the NetBeans IDE, with all the IDE-specific modules stripped away. The NetBeans Platform provides an application's common requirements—such as menus, document management, and settings—right out-of-the-box. Building an application "on top of NetBeans" means that, instead of writing applications from scratch, you only provide the parts of your application that the NetBeans Platform doesn't already have. At the end of the development cycle, you bundle your application with the NetBeans Platform, saving you time and energy and resulting in a solid, reliable application.
• NetBeans (Plug-in) Module. A group of Java classes that provides an application with a specific feature. For example, the feature provided by the Java classes in the Google Toolbar Module is a google toolbar. The Java classes use the manifest.mf file to declare the module and the layer.xml configuration file to register their functionality in the System Filesystem. In NetBeans terminology, "plug-in" is an adjective while "module" is a noun. There is no difference in meaning between them.
• Cluster. A cluster is a group of modules. They are usually closely related as in the example of a loader, editor and viewer for a specific file format, but can also be a group of unrelated modules that together form a complete application which you can distribute to your users. This relieves you from having to distribute the platform to those who already have a copy, which is similar to how applications are often distributed without a copy of the JRE.
• Module Suite. A group of interdependent modules that are deployed together. The IDE helps you to brand the suite -- for example, you can add a splash screen and you can specify the parts of the NetBeans Platform that you don't want your application to provide.
• NetBeans System Filesystem. The system filesystem is the general registry for publicly accessible data and objects. It is a virtual filesystem that contains configuration information. NetBeans stores a wide variety of configuration information in the system filesystem. For example, the system filesystem contains a folder called "Menu", which contains subfolders with names such as "File" and "Edit". These subfolders contain files that represent Java classes which implement the actions that appear in the "File" and "Edit" menus.
  When you create a module, you are free to create your own folders in the system filesystem to store data that relate to your module. You can also add objects to existing folders. One of the reasons to use the system filesystem is that it allows objects to be declared, but their classes not actually loaded by the JVM until something needs to use them, thus saving memory.
  One important aspect of a NetBeans virtual filesystem is that it can fire events to notify the rest of the system when something in it changes. NetBeans listens for changes in the system filesystem, and if, for example, something creates a new object in one of the menu folders, that new item will appear in the menu.
• XML Layer Files. You use a XML layer file (layer.xml) as part of the installation system for your module. The contents of the layer.xml will be automatically included in the system filesystem when your module is installed.
  When you use a module project template, a layer.xml file is automatically created for you. When you use a module file template to create a new action or to have the IDE recognize a new file type, the IDE automatically registers the new items in the layer.xml. You can use the System Filesystem Browser to tweak the layer.xml file, or you can do so manually using code completion in the Source Editor.
• NetBeans APIs. The NetBeans APIs are the public interfaces and classes which are available to module writers. They are divided into specific APIs for dealing with different types of functionality. The contents and behavior of the Java source packages and its subpackages, as specified in the API reference documentation, are the APIs. After you access the NetBeans API sources and Javadoc, you can refer to them in the Source Editor, while developing NetBeans modules. For a full list of NetBeans APIs, see the NetBeans API List.

• NetBeans IDE 5.0 Plug-in Module Quick Start Guide (Start here if you don't know anything yet)

• NetBeans IDE 5.0 Module and Platform Development

Tips and Tricks

• Actions

• Data Objects

• Code completion
• Code folding
• Multiview editor
• ...
• ...

NetBeansDeveloperFAQ^?

• API documentation for Netbeans development build

• API documentation for Netbeans 4.0

• First steps^? (Start here if you don't know anything yet)

• BuildingNetBeans^?

• NetBeansSources^?

• for Netbeans 4.0^?

Netbeans Developer Documentation

This is the main page for documentation about developing modules^? for NetBeans^? and using the NetBeans Platform^?.

General Documentation

• First steps (Start here if you don't know anything yet)

• Getting the sources using CVS

• Installing Netbeans

• ???

Module Development

• for Netbeans 3.6 and earlier

• for Netbeans 4.0

• Upgrade modules from 3.6 to 4.0^?

Netbeans API

Nebeans provides a rich set of APIs to extend NetBeans^?. The hardest part of understanding the APIs is probably to know what functionality each API provides. Following pages give you overview over each API.

• API descriptions sorted by functionality (recommented)

• APIs ordered alphabetically

You can find the javadoc and more information about the APIs at http://openide.netbeans.org.

• API documentation for Netbeans 4.0 beta

• API documentation for Netbeans 3.6

• API documentation for Netbeans 3.5

Tutorials

Glossary

Check the glossary ^? for common words used when talking about NetBeans^? development.

Old Wiki content

Developer FAQs

<-- BEGIN Developer BEGIN -->

• Coding^?
• Filesystems^?
• Getting Started^?
• Menus and Options^?
• Modules^?
• Nodes and Explorer^?
• The Editor^?
• ModuleDevelopmentMiscellaneous^?
• ModuleDevelopment -Miscellaneous^? (dupliated topic! delete one!)

<-- END Developer END -->

Comments:

* Don't forget to change the link to the final 4.0 API documentation once available.

Go to the user documentation^? page if you search documentation about using NetBeans^?.