Eclipse Platform Plug-in developper Guide

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Eclipse PlatformPlug-in developper Guide
PDG HowTos
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Plugging into the workbench

• The workbench is the cockpit for navigating all
  of the function provided by plug-ins.
• By using the workbench, we can navigate resources
  and we can view and edit the content and
  properties of these resources.

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Workbench
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workbench
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• we use the term workbench for referring to the
  workbench window (IWorkbenchWindow).
• The workbench window is the top-level window in a
  workbench.
• It is the frame that holds the menu bar, tool
  bar, status line, short cut bar, and pages.
• In general, you don't need to program to the
  workbench window. You just want to know that it's
  there.
• Note  You can open multiple workbench windows
  however each workbench window is a self-contained
  world of editors and views, so we'll just focus
  on a single workbench window.
• From the user's point of view, a workbench
  contains views and editors. There are a few other
  classes used to implement the workbench window. 

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Page

• Inside the workbench window, you'll find one page
  (IWorkbenchPage) that in turn contains parts.
• Pages are an implementation mechanism for
  grouping parts. You typically don't need to
  program to the page, but you'll see it in the
  context of programming and debugging.

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Basic workbench extension points
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org.eclipse.ui.views

• A view is a workbench part that can navigate a
  hierarchy of information or display properties
  for an object. 
• Only one instance of any given view is open in a
  workbench page. 
• When the user makes selections or other changes
  in a view, those changes are immediately
  reflected in the workbench.
• Views are often provided to support a
  corresponding editor. 
• outline view shows a structured view of the
  information in an editor. 
• properties view shows the properties of an object
  that is currently being edited.

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views extension point

• The extension point org.eclipse.ui.views allows
  plug-ins to add views to the workbench.
• Plug-ins that contribute a view must
• register the view in their plugin.xml file and
• provide  configuration information about the
  view, such as
• its implementation class,
• the category (or group) of views to which it
  belongs,
• the name and icon that should be used to describe
  the view in menus and labels.
• The interface for views is defined in IViewPart,
• but plug-ins can choose to extend the ViewPart
  class .

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Example

• A declaration of the extension in the plugin.xml.
• ltextension point"org.eclipse.ui.views"gt
• ltcategory id"org.eclipse.ui.examples.readmetool"
  namereadme"gt lt/categorygt
• ltview id"org.eclipse.ui.examples.readmetool.views
  .SectionsView"
• name"Readme Sections" icon"icons/view16/secti
  ons.gif" category"org.eclipse.ui.examples.readmet
  ool" class"org.eclipse.ui.examples.readmetool.Rea
  dmeSectionsView"gtlt/viewgt
• lt/extensiongt

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Category

• we declare what extension point our plug-in is
  contributing using the extension element.
• The org.eclipse.ui.views extension has several
  different configuration parameters.
• We first declare a category for our view
  extension.
• Categories can be used to group related views
  together in the workbench Show View dialog.
• We define our own category, readme" so that it
  will display in its own group. 
• We declare a unique id for our view and specify
  the name of the class that provides the
  implementation of the view. We also specify a
  name for the view, Readme Sections" which will
  be shown in the Show View dialog and in our
  view's title bar.

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Outline View for CUPSupport

• ltextension point"org.eclipse.ui.views"gt
• ltcategory idnccu.cs.cupSupport.cupViews"
  nameCup-related Views?"gt lt/categorygt
• ltview idnccu.cs.cupSupport.grammar.OutlineView"
  
• nameGrammar Outline" icon"icons/cup.gif"
  categorynccu.cs.cupSupport.cupViews"
  classnccu.cs.cupSupport.view.GRammarOutlineView"
  gtlt/viewgt
• lt/extensiongt

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Types Workbench menu contributions

• View Actions
• Editor Actions
• Popup Menus
• Action Sets
• Action Set Part Associations

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org.eclipse.ui.viewActions

• for plug-ins to contribute behavior to views that
  already exist in the workbench
• This extension point allows plug-ins to
  contribute menu items, submenus and tool bar
  entries to an existing view's local pull-down
  menu and local tool bar.

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• You may have noticed an item in the navigator's
  local tool bar that becomes enabled whenever a
  readme file is selected.
• This item also appears in the navigator's local
  pull-down menu.
• These actions appear because the readme tool
  plug-in contributes them using the viewActions
  extension.

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plugin.xml

• ltextension point "org.eclipse.ui.viewActions"gt
• ltviewContribution
• id"org.eclipse.ui.examples.readmetool.vc1"
  targetID"org.eclipse.ui.views.ResourceNavigator"gt
  
• ltaction
• id"org.eclipse.ui.examples.readmetool.va1"
  label"PopupMenu.ResourceNav.label"
  menubarPath"additions" toolbarPath"additions"
  icon"icons/obj16/editor.gif" tooltip"PopupMenu.
  ResourceNav.tooltip" helpContextId"org.eclipse.ui
  .examples.readmetool.view_action_context"
  class"org.eclipse.ui.examples.readmetool.ViewActi
  onDelegate" enablesFor"1"gt
• ltselection class"org.eclipse.core.resour
  ces.IFile
• name".readme"/gt
• lt/actiongt lt/viewContributiongt lt/extensiongt

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• viewContribution/_at_id unique id.
• viewContribution/_at_targetID the view to which we
  are adding the action.
• action/_at_id, action/_at_label,
• action/_at_icon, action/_at_tooltip,
• The information in the plugin.xml is all that's
  needed to add items to menus and tool bars since
  plug-in code will only run when the action is
  actually selected from the menu or toolbar. To
  provide the action behavior, the implementation
  class specified in the plugin.xml must implement
  the IViewActionDelegate interface.

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Types of workbench menu contributions

• 1. View Action
• extension point name
• org.eclipse.ui.viewActions
• location of actions
• Actions appear in a specific view's local toolbar
  and local pulldown menu.
• details
• Contribute an action class that implements
  IViewActionDelegate. Specify
• the id of the contribution and
• the id of the target view that should show the
  action.
• The label and image dictate the appearance of the
  action in the UI.
• The path specifies the location relative to the
  view's menu and toolbar items.

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Editor Action

• extension point org.eclipse.ui.editorActions
• location of action
• Actions are associated with an editor and appear
  in the workbench menu and/or tool bar.
• Details
• Contribute an action class that implements
  IEditorActionDelegate. Specify
• the id of the contribution and
• the id of the target editor that causes the
  action to be shown.
• The label and image specify the appearance of the
  action in the UI.
• Separate menu and toolbar paths specify the
  existence and location of the contribution in the
  workbench menu and toolbar.

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Popup Menus

• extensin point name org.eclipse.ui.popupMenus
• location od actions
• Actions appear in the popup menu of an editor or
  view.
• Actions associated with an object type show up in
  all popups of views and editors that show the
  object type.
• Actions associated with a specific popup menu
  appear only in that popup menu.

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• Details
• Object contributions specify
• 1. the type of object for which the action
  should appear in a popup menu.
• The action will be shown in all view and editor
  popups that contain the object type. 
• Provide an action class that implements
  IObjectActionDelegate.
• Viewer contributions specify
• 1. the id of the target popup menu in which the
  menu item should appear. 
• Provide an action class that implements
  IEditorActionDelegate or IViewActionDelegate. 

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Action Sets

• extensin point org.eclipse.ui.actionSets
• location of actions
• Actions appear in the workbench main menus and
  toolbar.
• Actions are grouped into action sets.
• All actions in an action set will show up in the
  workbench menus and toolbars according to the
  user's selection of action sets and the current
  perspective shown in the workbench. 
• May be influenced by actionSetPartAssociations
  (below).

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Action set part Association

• extension point actionSetPartAssociations
• location
• Actions sets are shown only when the specified
  views or editors are active. 
• This is ignored if the user has customized the
  current perspective.
• Details
• Specify an action set by id and followed by one
  or more parts (by id) that must be active in the
  current perspective in order to show the action
  set.

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Details

• Contribute an action class that implements
  IWorkbenchWindowActionDelegate or
  IWorkbenchWindowPulldownDelegate.
• Specify the name and id of the action set.
• Enumerate all of the actions that are defined for
  that action set.
• For each action, separate menu and toolbar paths
  specify the existence and location of the
  contribution in the workbench menu and toolbar.