There are two places you might want to use Eclipse outside of class: on a machine you control, and on a College computer. In the first case, you can just install Eclipse (as explained below), and it should work easily.
In the second case (College labs), Eclipse is available in a network folder which can be accessed on all machines. ITS recommends that you copy that folder to the desktop of the machine you're using. Or, copy the folder to your USB drive, instead of following the install-on-USB instructions below. This might save you some time, and make it easier to keep your work safe.
If you do run Eclipse from the desktop, make sure you delete your file sfrom the computer when you're done working.
If you need to work at other labs, you will need to have Eclipse installed on your USB drive (again, see below)<./p>
Installing Eclipse is fairly straightforward. First download the installer for Eclipse Neon. If you're on a Mac, you'll need to unzip the downloaded file (just double-click it). Then run the installer. You should see options for several variants of Eclipse: pick "Eclipse IDE for Java EE Developers," which is probably the second option you'll see. You'll be asked for an installation folder. The default choice is perfectly fine, unless you know you want to put it somewhere else. During the brief installation process, you'll be asked to accept a license or two. When installation is complete, click "Launch," and Eclipse will run for the first time. You'll be asked to select a "workspace directory," which is where all your Eclipse projects will be kept; again, the default is fine unless you have a strong opinion otherwise. (If you still have a lingering Eclipse Installer window open, you can close it now.)
You should also make sure you have the latest version of the Java Development Kit (JDK), which is Java 8. You can get it here.
If you're using Eclipse on USB, you should make sure that your Eclipse workspace is also on your USB drive. Once you select a place for it, you can tell Eclipse to make that your default workspace, so it will stop asking you each time you start.
You may want to make sure Java 8 is on your USB drive, so
when you run the JDK installer, make sure it installs on
your USB drive. Record the folder name (probably
something like
e:\java\jdk1.8.0\
).
One last step: you need to be able to tell the operating
system where to find this version of Java, so you'll write a
very short script. Using Notepad, create a file in the root
directory of your USB drive called something like
javaUSB.bat
(the name doesn't really matter, but it needs to end in
.bat
). In that file, type one line:
set Path=java\jdk1.8.0\bin;%Path%
Note: don't use a drive letter, but otherwise make sure the path matches the name of the folder where you installed Java.
In order to run Eclipse, and make sure that you have the right version of Java, open a command window and issue three commands:
E:
javaUSB
eclipse\eclipse.exe
Again, the drive letter and particular paths may vary depending on how you've set up your USB drive.