When you start the IDE for the first time, several things happen simultaneously:
The window at the top of the screen is referred to as the "main window." It is the command center for the IDE. In the main window, you can find the menu bar, several toolbars, and the workspace tabs (Editing, GUI Editing, Running, and Debugging). From the menus, you have access to all the top-level windows in the IDE, such as the Source Editor, the Properties window, the debugger window, and the Options window.
The Help menu gives you access to such things as the online help and a link to the Java Developer Connection (under Bookmarks) site where you can get information on updates and pointers to Java resources. From the Help menu, you choose Submit Feedback to send questions or comments about the IDE to the development team.
You can activate the most commonly called commands in the IDE from the main menu bar and the various toolbars in the main window. Each toolbar provides a group of related commands:
System | Commands for opening a new template, and saving open files |
Edit | Commands for editing source code |
Data | Commands that enable you to find or view information |
Build | Commands for compiling or building |
Debug | Commands for setting a breakpoint, adding a watch, getting trace information, and other common debugging commands |
At the left side of each toolbar is a drag bar. Use the drag bar to reposition the toolbar.
There are also some toolbars that exist outside of the main window. For example, the Form Editor contains a component palette with numerous tabs for various AWT, Swing, and JavaBeans components, along with a selection of layout managers and border styles. It also contains buttons which show the different modes that the form editor can be in.
A workspace is a set of windows that are related to performing a particular task. From the main window, you can open the default workspaces: Editing, GUI Editing, Running, and Debugging. When the IDE is first started, the Editing workspace is opened. You can customize the workspaces to fit your needs.
To continue the tour of the IDE, see Workspaces for descriptions of the top-level windows in each workspace.
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