Lessons learnt developing a NetBeans PDF viewer plugin in JavaFX

Ernest Duodu

Sylwia Kedzia

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Who are we? What do we do?

Agenda

What is JavaFX? JavaFX and Swing. Why write a plugin for Netbeans? Anatomy of a plugin. Integrating JavaFX into Swing Applications. Takeaways. Questions and Answers.

JavaFX

At the end of the day, on the one hand we have computer systems, and on the other, people, Connecting them together, and allowing people to interact with computer systems in a compelling way, requires graphical user interfaces.

Christopher OliverCreator of F3https://blogs.oracle.com/chrisoliver/entry/epitaph

Key features of JavaFX?

Two way integration with Swing. 3D graphics. WebView API. Node structure of JavaFX vs the flat structure of Swing.

Why JavaFX?

CSS Support. FXML and Scene Builder. Supports Visual and Audio Media. Better Looking GUI. 2D and 3D Transformations. Visual Effects. Easy to Develop.

Why write a plugin for NetBeans?

NetBeans is very a Modular IDE. Plugin based development environment. Has lots of useful and tested code. Generate most codes for you.

What's needed in order to create a Plugin?

Development Environment “NetBeans”. Testing and Debugging Environment “NetBeans”. Deployment “NetBeans”.

Key Takeaways on JavaFX:

Use the latest version of Java. Use CSS very similar to HTML. Download the Scene Builder. Platform.setImplicitExit(false);. Remember to run FX code in FX application.

Thread(Platform.runLater)

5 tips for writing NetBeans Plug-ins Use the NetBeans built -in menu wizards to write your

plugin (huge time saver). You can build whole apps on NetBeans platform (not

just plugins). Use the Module Suite to break your plugins into small,

functional units. There is some really good ebooks on NetBeans.

Recommend 'NetBeans for beginners'. Put your plugin on NetBeans portal and also look at

other plugins there.

Questions and Answers

Download source code from

https://www.dropbox.com/s/vfk900lnjhkzwup/JavaOnePlugin.zip?dl=0

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