Eclipse Setup:
Step 1: Download and Install Java 1.5.0
Note: Be sure to Un-install any previous versions of Java on your machine first!!!Go to this web page: http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.5.0/download.jsp
Click on 'Download JDK 5.0 Update 6'
You will have to click 'Accept' in the agreement, then you can choose your download. If you have a PC, you will probably want the first group (Windows platform). You can choose whether to use their online installation or offline installation- either one will work. The only difference is that the online install will download files during the installation, while the offline downloads all files before the installation.
While Java is downloading, you may want to get Mozilla Firefox for your PC. We will be making applets, which display through a web browser, and I (personally) have had better luck using Mozilla. Mozilla should be installed before you install Java, so that it can set up the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) in all of your browsers. Mozilla Firefox can be downloaded from www.mozilla.org.
After downloading, run the installer on your machine- this will install the Java platform to your hard drive. Follow the instructions- the installer should ask towards the end which browser to set up its Virtual Machine / Java Run Time Environment (JRE) - make sure you allow it to do this on the browser(s) you will be using for the class- it will save you problems later on. (Your assignments will be tested in a browser).
Step 2: Download and Install Eclipse
Note: Step 2 & 3 require that you can open ZIP files. If you don't have a program to do this (most Windows OS will automatically open ZIP files) you can download one from www.winzip.com.Go to this webpage: http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/
Click on 'Download now: Eclipse SDK 3.1.1'
Choose your download location, and open up the 'zip' file that you will download.
Note: the download will likely take a while- Eclipse is 103 MB.Extract the 'Eclipse' folder from the ZIP file (drag it to the location you would like it to be installed - I dragged my eclipse folder to C:/Program Files/)
After extraction, the folder will look like this:
To open Eclipse, just click on 'eclipse.exe'. If you want Eclipse on your desktop, create a shortcut to it on your desktop. You can create a shortcut by right-clicking on 'eclipse.exe', then 'Create Shortcut'. This shortcut can then be moved to wherever you would like to open Eclipse (Desktop, Start menu, etc.)
Eclipse will then ask you where you would like to set up your Workspaces directory. This location will be where your projects will be stored. You can use the default location, or specify one of your own. At this point, you will have Eclipse installed.
FYI- Eclipse automatically finds the Java platform you installed. Make sure you have only one version- 1.5 as indicated above. Otherwise Eclipse may find the 'wrong' version of Java on your machine.
Step 3: Setting up the Wheels package
The 'Wheels' package is something the book uses to help you learn Java, but this package is not included in the Java installation. Therefore, you will need to visit the book's website, and download the package so that you can use it on your assignments throughout the semester.
Go to this webpage: http://wps.aw.com/aw_sanders_oopjava_1/0,10889,2403930-,00.html
Click on 'WHEELS', then click on 'Download WHEELS'.
Note: These Instructions may change- so check back later for updates.
After downloading 'Wheels.zip', open the zip file, and extract to your Desktop (or somewhere else you can remember) to a folder called 'wheels'. Upon opening the folder, it should look like this:
(Note: Java is case-sensitive, so make sure your 'wheels' folder is all lower-case)
Leave this folder alone for a bit- we'll refer back to it as we start a new Eclipse project on the 'Eclipse Basics' webpage.
At this point, you are ready to start using Eclipse. Visit this page for a tutorial.
Any questions, please contact your TA
