Adventures in Web Application Develompent by Phil Duba - CFEclipse

Eclipse and the Compare With Each Other

Sat, 13 Oct 2007 14:45:00 -0400

Ray Camden released yesterday version 5.9 of his BlogCFC application on which this website runs. I have always struggled with getting Ray's changes into my site, particularly when they affect areas of the application I might have changed to get the layout or functionality (like the inline comments) to what I want. I have used Eclipse's (within CFEclipse, of course) "Local History" to revert back to something I might have done earlier while working on a particular file. Today, for the first time, I used the other option within the Compare file-context menu, "With Each Other". Boy I wish I had discovered this much earlier as it would have made my life easier (and saved some ink) when comparing what changes occurred between the base BlogCFC code base and what I had on my system. It just goes to show, take a few minutes to look at the IDE you use to develop in your particular programming language as you will most likely find something that will make your job easier.

Eclipse Tip - Updated

Fri, 07 Sep 2007 17:23:00 -0400

I am sure I am not the first to discover this (maybe even the last, but who cares), but the one thing I could never do was tab between open files in Eclipse like I could in other applications using CTRL-TAB or CTRL-SHIFT-TAB (Windows only, obviously). I do use the CTRL-HOME and CTRL-END commands to go to the top and bottom, respectively, of the file I am working in quite a bit. Today, I accidentally hit CTRL-SHIFT-PageUp and all of a sudden, I'm in the file to the left of the one I was working in. Hmmm, so I tried CTRL-SHIFT-PageDown and went back to the one I was originally in. You have no idea how many times I have cursed Eclipse for not allowing the CTRL-TAB window functionality. To find this shortcut, well, lets say I was a little more than glad. To top it off, I have a new ergonomic keyboard that has Back and Forward buttons. While in Eclipse, I clicked them and went in between open files. Wooohooo! Well, like I said, I'm sure I'm one of the last people to figure this out in Eclipse, but hey, even the blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while.

Note: I updated this entry. It was CTRL-SHIFT-PageUp/Down. I originally had just CTRL-PageUp/Down. I apologize for not putting in the right keystroke earlier.

CFEclipse article on CommunityMX

Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:12:00 -0400

First off, I love all the articles on CommunityMX. I can find just anything I'm looking for on this site as far as development, CSS or design goes. Today, they released a free article describing how to create a ColdFusion page using Eclipse and the ColdFusion plug-in CFEclipse. It's a good article and covers the basics to get started using CFEclipse for your ColdFusion development. I believe Adobe will put money into CFEclipse and make that the primary development IDE for ColdFusion, moving Dreamweaver towards more of a Designer interface once again.

CFEclipse ... I'm a converter!!

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 12:43:00 -0400

Well, after going back and forth between Dreamweaver, CFEclipse, and Homesite+, I think I've finally decided to go full blown into CFEclipse. Part of the reason is Zorn, Macromedia's Flex Builder application built on top of the Eclipse platform. The other reason is the interface setup and project definitions for the workspace. I think it's easier to use than Dreamweaver's sites. I also like the CFC wizards. They are similar to Dreamweaver's but I thought CFEclipse was a little cleaner in the interface and code generation. The only thing I haven't figured out yet is how to reset the default color for text. I use a black background and white font with lighter colors for everything else. I can't find where I set the default non-CF related text as everything else goes to the colors I set. I just can't see non-SQL keyword code or plain text outside of HTML or CF tags. I just like what they've done with it in the last 3-4 months since CFUnited and ultimately, that's why I'm making the switch.

Flex Builder 2 and CFEclipse

Tue, 25 Oct 2005 21:04:00 -0400

Found this little bit but maybe its common knowledge out there except for us Eclipse newbies. I was able to add the CFEclipse plug-in to the Flex Builder standalone install tonight. Now I can create Flex projects and work on ColdFusion Components. Basically, it's the same install, at least from what I could see at CFEclipse's website.
From inside of the Flex Builder, select Help -> Software Updates -> Find and Install.
Follow the rest of the directions on the CFEclipse website and you should be good to go. You will have to restart Flex Builder, however, so make sure all your work is saved.