Eclipse vs. BB JDE 4.7.0

[spampeg]

I was just curious as to what people preferred to code in for BB development. I see there is a huge following of people using Eclipse, but still having problems getting the BB API to work in Eclipse.

Any pros/cons of each I should know about? Or is there an even better (I know, it all depends on personal preference) development app for BB coding in Windows.

I must say, going from Visual Studio to BB JDE 4.7.0 gave me a reality check. Oh C# I miss you... but Java syntax and flow doesn't seem to be all that different.

[patrick.waugh]

Originally Posted by spampeg

I was just curious as to what people preferred to code in for BB development. I see there is a huge following of people using Eclipse, but still having problems getting the BB API to work in Eclipse.

You might want to check out my detailed Eclipse setup on my developers Wiki. Click the link in my sig.

Any pros/cons of each I should know about? Or is there an even better (I know, it all depends on personal preference) development app for BB coding in Windows.

You basically have 3 choices:

1) BB JDE
2) Eclipse (with or without the RIM plugin
3) NetBeans

My advice is that if you are a beginner, use the BB JDE. The main advantage is that it easily allows you to setup BB apps, and you can debug (something you will do a lot of as you learn the API).

As RIM now plans on supporting and migrating to Eclipse, this is going to be the platform of choice if you are a serious programmer. Moreover, if you want a modern IDE with code completion etc, then it's either this or NetBeans. You will need either the BB plugin, or Ant along with bb-ant-tools to get it to work.

I'd only recommend NetBeans for someone who is already using it as their primary IDE and is familiar with how to configure it, as it is the most difficult to setup.

I must say, going from Visual Studio to BB JDE 4.7.0 gave me a reality check. Oh C# I miss you... but Java syntax and flow doesn't seem to be all that different.

Java syntax is easy to pickup if you program in C#, although Java is certainly not C# v3. That said, for a programming platform Windows is a toy when compared to Linux, so most professional developers are developing in Java on Linux, not Windows. This allows one to bring the full power of many tools to bear on the problems of DSC as well as setup things like continuous build systems and automated testing, something a hobbist is simply not going to do.

If you are on Windows, then I'd go BB JDE till you learn the API, then perhaps go to Eclipse if you want a bit more in your IDE.

[phugit]

Originally Posted by patrick.waugh

You might want to check out my detailed Eclipse setup on my developers Wiki. Click the link in my sig.

Patrick, I visited the berrysoft site but couldn't find your Eclipse link. Any chance you could post a direct link?

Thanks!

[patrick.waugh]

Originally Posted by phugit

Patrick, I visited the berrysoft site but couldn't find your Eclipse link. Any chance you could post a direct link?

Thanks!

You must be using IE 8 Beta, which does not yet render sites correctly.

You can get to the wiki at Main Page - BerrysoftWiki, but I would recommend doing so with non-beta software, as IE 8 does not yet actually work. =)

Try the new free Google browser "Chrome", or FireFox.

[Rob.G]

One thing I can't quite figure out from the Blackberry Developer site... does the Eclipse plug-in work on just 3.4, or will it work on 3.3? I'm still on 3.3 because of some other plug-ins that haven't been updated.

Rob

[emacf1]

you need for sure Eclipse 3.4...

I had the same problem at the start... but actually it's no big deal to install a second eclipse (3.4) beside you current 3.3 installation (my personal advice in this case is just make sure you are going to use a separate project directory for the new installation).

Installing addon's in 3.4 is slightly different then in 3.3 - that's why you might be a bit confused about the Eclipse Plug-in installation guide that can be found at RIM's developer side.

I tried the BB JDE as well but I have to admit, that (as a long term Eclipse & VisualAge user) that the plugin is just quite nice and I could do everything I want to do (incl. signing).

Kind Regards
Matthias

[dinik11]

Eclipse Ganymede rocks.. much better than RIMS SDK. Its more of a RAD tool. But I must admit, RIMs SDK is better for profiling and Testing

[dinik11]

Sorry forgot to mention, Eclipse is your one-stop shop for all your Java developement IDEs.. i.e BlackBerry projects, J2EE projects, Standard Test class modules.. etc etc.. wheras the RIM SDK sadly is an IDE for only BB developement

[mike240se]

how does one go about learning the RIM API?

is there a manual for it or something?

also is there code completion for RIM api stuff in eclipse or the ide? i am getting some in eclipse with the rim plugins, but not much. not enough to learn the api.

[ilabrada]

Hi. I have the Eclipse working fine. I can develope and debug. My problem is that Eclipse is not showing or doing the autocomplete to my code. Do you have any idea of how can I fix this problem.

[legallyaddictive]

If you modify your project and direct the libraries to reference the net_rim_api.jar file in your BlackBerry installation's lib directory it should be able to auto complete.