|  |
Web Browser-Based Interaction with the Eclipse IDE
An Eclipse plug-in that enables browser-based access to Eclipse.
Date Posted: October 11, 2007
|
|
|
|
|
What is Web Browser-Based Interaction with the Eclipse IDE?
Eclipse is a widely-used, open-source, integrated development environment (IDE). However, in its current form, Eclipse requires installation and configuration.
Browser-based access to an Eclipse IDE or an Eclipse-based application allows users to access Eclipse without any installation or configuration. Users can evaluate an application without downloading it. Alternatively, Eclipse can be accessed by multiple browser-based users. This application provides an opportunity for combining Eclipse content in mashups.
How does it work? This technology consists of an Eclipse plug-in that handles the actual HTTP server-to-service requests. After it is downloaded and installed on the server instance of Eclipse, this plug-in extracts the Eclipse User Interface definition (for example, context-based menus, perspectives, and views) and serves it over the Internet following the XML User Interface Language (XUL) standard. The user interactions on the browser are transmitted as events to the Eclipse instance and vice versa.
The server runs at a pre-defined port; the default port is 9008. However, this port is configurable through the Eclipse preferences page. The browser connects to this port in order to interact with Eclipse, render its user interface, and perform actions on Eclipse.
The following diagram captures the way this technology works:
This Eclipse plug-in requires an embedded Web server; the one we use is the Jetty Web server. The Web server receives requests from the browser client, interacts with the current Eclipse instance, and sends the response back to the browser client in the form of XUL. The Eclipse SWT widgets are mapped to XUL elements and rendered in the Mozilla browser.
|
|
|
| | About the technology author(s):
Gautham Pai joined IBM® in 2005. He came up with the idea for Web Browser-Based Interaction with the Eclipse IDE and worked as its lead developer. He has worked on a variety of technologies, including RFID, Eclipse, and Web 2.0. Mr. Pai is interested in developments related to information management and the World Wide Web. He maintains an active blog.
Kiran Subbaraman leads the WebSphere® Technology Institute in India. He works on technologies and concepts related to Web 2.0, Web-oriented architecture, and scripting languages. Mr. Subbaraman can be reached through e-mail.
Adarsh Ramamurthy has been working with IBM since 2007, having interned with IBM prior to that. He has been working on Web Browser-Based Interaction with the Eclipse IDE since his internship. Mr. Ramamurthy's interests are in the areas of XML and Eclipse-based technologies. He can be reached through e-mail.
Vikas Patil has been working with IBM since 2007 and interned with IBM prior to that. He has been working on Web Browser-Based Interaction with the Eclipse IDE since his internship. Mr. Patil's interests lie in the Dojo toolkit and in server technologies, specifically Geronimo and WebSphere application servers. He can be reached through e-mail.
Srirang G. Doddihal, Prasanna V. Pandit, Mohd Amjed Chand, and Karthik Ananth also contributed to this project while interning at IBM.
IBM and WebSphere are trademarks of IBM Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both.
Other company, product, or service names may be trademarks or service marks of others.
|
|
|
| |
|
