Plug-in development 101, Part 2: Introducing Rich-Client Applications

To create a rich-client application within Eclipse, we need to work with a concept called product configurations. Product configurations are what PDE provides as a way for plug-in developers to build rich-client applications. To understand product configurations, we need to have a sample rich-client application to work with. We'll create one by taking advantage of the PDE template mechanism we went over in Part 1. Create a plug-in project named rcp and make sure to indicate that its a rich-client application, then select the RCP Application with a view template (see Figure 5).

Figure 5. Rich-client application template

The next step is to create a product configuration file to help assemble the rich-client application we previously created. To create a new product configuration, right-click on the plug-in project and select New > Product Configuration to launch the new product configuration wizard (see Figure 6). Accept all the defaults, use rcp.product for the name of your product configuration file and click Finish to launch the product configuration editor. The next sections will go over the various pages of the product configuration editor.

Figure 6. New product configuration wizard

Overview

Similar to the plug-in manifest editor, the first page presented within the product configuration editor is the Overview tab (see Figure 7). It gives a quick synopsis of the product configuration, convenient links to test and export products, and the ability to select whether the product is based on plug-ins or features. To quickly test applications, select the Launch an Eclipse application link within the Testing section and see what the rich-client application looks like.

Figure 7. Overview

That's all there is to the Overview tab within the product configuration editor. If you're interested in the basic operations you can do on product configurations, head back to Overview.

It is also possible to launch your application from here. For example, click the Launch an Eclipse application and you should see your application pop up (see Figure 8).

Figure 8. Launching applications