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| <title>Meet a NetBeans Module Writer: Chuk Munn Lee</title> |
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| <meta name="AUTHOR" content="Geertjan Wielenga"> |
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| <h1>Meet a NetBeans Module Writer: Chuk Munn Lee</h1> |
| <p><small><a href="mailto:nbdocs_feedback@usersguide.netbeans.org?subject=Feedback:%20Meet%20A%20NetBeans%20Module%20Writer:%20Chuk">Feedback</a></small></p> |
| |
| <table width="190" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" align="right" class="ltblue"> |
| <tbody> |
| <tr> |
| <td align="center"><img align="center" src="nbm_interviews/chuk/chukmunlee_pic.jpg" alt="Chuk's picture"> |
| |
| <br><b>Chuk Munn Lee</b></td> |
| </tr> |
| |
| <tr> |
| <td> |
| <p>Chuk's hot links: |
| <ul><li><a href="http://blog.sun.com/chuk">Chuk's blog</a> |
| <li><a href="http://java.sun.com/developer/technicalArticles/Interviews/cmlee_qa.html">java.sun.com Interview with Chuk</a> |
| <li><a href="http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/source/sdk/">OpenOffice SDK</a> |
| <li><a href="http://api.openoffice.org/DevelopersGuide/DevelopersGuide.html">OpenOffice Developer's Guide</a> |
| <li><a href="http://development.openoffice.org/">General OpenOffice Development</a> |
| </ul> |
| |
| |
| |
| </tr> |
| </tbody> |
| </table> |
| |
| <p>NetBeans Staff met with Sun technology evangelist Chuk Munn Lee. Chuk recently wrote a module |
| that integrates Star Office into NetBeans IDE. Here, he talks about why and how he created this module. He also |
| talks about how Dilbert's pointy haired boss inspired him and what he learnt from |
| Robin Williams in "Dead Poets Society". In addition, he tells us about an interesting Chinese saying... |
| |
| <p><h3>Chuk, where in the world are you and what do you do there?</h3> |
| |
| <p>I'm based in Singapore and have been with Sun for |
| 10 years now. My primary role in Sun is that of a Java technology evangelist. |
| My main responsibilities are working with individual developers and software |
| vendors on their Java applications, helping them to architect and prototype |
| their applications. This can be either server or desktop-based applications. |
| <p>My focus for the past few years has been mostly on the Java EE side. |
| However, lately I've been helping developers on client applications, |
| in particular Swing-based applications. I also keep ISVs abreast of the |
| latest developments in the Java platform area in relation to what is new and what |
| is on the horizon. I also help develop content such as presentations, demos, |
| and labs for SunTech Days, Sun Developer Days, and JavaOne. |
| |
| <p><h3>You've been working on integrating Star Office into NetBeans IDE. Why?</h3> |
| |
| <p>Using Java with Star Office is one of the best kept secrets; it should not be so. |
| Star Office is extremely programmable. You can, for example, create Star Office macros in Java. |
| You can embed Star Office in a Java application. You can get a Java application to interact with |
| a Star Office instance in a client/server fashion. Star Office has a programmatic interface call |
| UNO which allows all these things to happen. |
| As you probably know, NetBeans is enjoying an incredible resurgence; part of this, I believe, is |
| due to its powerful framework, which is called the NetBeans Platform, and |
| the NetBeans APIs that allow you to extend NetBeans in a lot of interesting and |
| innovative ways. The NetBeans development team has also made this powerful framework incredibly |
| easy to develop on. |
| |
| <p>So, I wanted to learn how to program Star Office and extend NetBeans, but doing two separate projects did |
| not appeal to me. I was then reminded of one of my favourite Dilbert cartoons: Dilbert approaches his |
| pointy haired manager and tells him that he is assigned two jobs to complete and he (Dilbert) |
| has only time to do one. The pointy haired manager then tells him: "Combine the two and do the one". |
| So I took the pointy haired manager's advice for once! Besides, I'm doing a lot of presentations |
| and NetBeans demos, so it also makes perfect sense to have Star Office running in NetBeans for that 'Wow' factor. |
| |
| <p>Here's what a Star Office text document looks like in NetBeans IDE:</p> |
| |
| <p><img align="center" src="nbm_interviews/chuk/staroffice.png" alt="so text doc"> |
| |
| <p><h3>Will I be able to use your module to open a Java file in the IDE? For example, will I be able |
| to open a Java file from a node in the Projects window |
| into a Star Office document, so that I can, for example, create a PDF file from it?</h3> |
| |
| <p>There is no reason why you cannot do this. Star Office can generate PDF. The |
| module in its current form cannot do this yet. I'm still learning about |
| NetBeans APIs. One of the things that I need to know first is how to attach an |
| Action to a node which will invoke Star Office to convert the Java file to PDF. |
| I'm studing Iván Rivera's Execution Profile module to understand how |
| this is done. |
| |
| <p>However, I think that we do not need "to use a butcher's knife to |
| slaughter a chicken" as the Chinese saying goes. If it is only PDF that you |
| want, there are other methods to do this like the PDF converter module that |
| Geertjan has written. |
| |
| <p><h3>Can you give a general technical overview of how the module works? |
| For example, how do you start Star Office? How do you get it to open inside the IDE? |
| And tell us about some other interesting aspects like that!</h3> |
| |
| <p></p>The module centers around a Star Office Java component called OfficeBean. |
| OfficeBean starts an instance of StarOffice in headless mode like so: |
| |
| <p><pre class="examplecode">soffice -nologo -nodefault -accept=pipe,name=projects_25B7Office;urp;StarOffice.ServiceManager</pre> |
| |
| |
| <p>OfficeBean will start an instance of Star Office in headless mode and listens for |
| communication with clients through a named pipe. The name of the pipe is created from the user's |
| login name, appended with '_25B7Office'. So the name is always consistent when the same users creates |
| OfficeBean so that OfficeBean can use existing instances.</p> |
| |
| <p>The started instance waits for communication from clients through the named pipe. OfficeBean |
| allows you to connect to an instance of StarOffice that is running locally or on a remote machine. |
| The module currently only connects to StarOffice instances that are running locally. If you want to |
| start StarOffice in 'remote' mode, this is the command to do it manually: |
| |
| <p><pre class="examplecode">soffice -nologo -nodefault -accept=socket,host=localhost,port=8100;urpStarOffice.ServiceManager</pre> |
| |
| <p>So, once OfficeBean has successfully started an instance of StarOffice, it then connects to this |
| instance and requests it to create a document, load the document, and so on. |
| |
| <p>As for displaying StarOffice |
| inside NetBeans, this is extremely simple as well. OfficeBean is an AWT Component, so once this is connected |
| you just add it to the NetBeans API's <tt>TopComponent</tt>. Here is an example of how you do it: |
| |
| <p><pre class="examplecode">final class StarOfficeWindowTopComponent extends TopComponent { |
| |
| public StarOfficeWindowTopComponent() { |
| //Creates an instance of OfficeBean, if StarOffice has not started it. |
| //If StarOffice has started, connect to it. |
| OfficeBean officeBean = new OfficeBean(); |
| ... |
| |
| //Configure the appearance of StarOffice |
| officeBean.setMenuBarVisible(true); |
| ... |
| |
| //Set the layout of TopComponent. |
| //Note that TopComponent extends JComponent. |
| setLayout(new BorderLayout()); |
| add(officeBean, BorderLayout.CENTER); |
| ... |
| }</pre></p> |
| |
| <p></p>That's it. It is so simple, but the effect is stunning. The StarOffice developer's |
| kit has a whole chapter on OfficeBean. |
| You can find more about OfficeBean <a href="http://api.openoffice.org/docs/DevelopersGuide/OfficeBean/OfficeBean.xhtml#1_JavaBean_for_office_components">here</a>. |
| |
| <div style="float: right;"><img src="nbm_interviews/chuk/quote1.png" alt="quote 1"></div> |
| |
| <p><h3>Where can I get the module from? What quality is it in?</h3> |
| |
| <p>You can get the the module from this entry in my blog: |
| |
| <p><a href="http://blogs.sun.com/roller/page/chuk?entry=second_try_netbeans_module_for">Second try!</a> |
| |
| <p>It has not been tested extensively; from my own personal experience in using |
| it, I've not had any problems. |
| |
| |
| |
| <p><h3>What are some of the problems you've encountered in the development of this module? And |
| how did you solve them?</h3> |
| |
| <p>The biggest problem that I encountered was coaxing Star Office to start. OfficeBean |
| loads a bunch of StarOffice native libraries. Getting these libraries to load |
| was a problem especially on Windows machines. I work exclusively on Solaris and |
| Linux so on these platforms, it is not a problem. However I do not have access |
| to a Windows machine, so I have to rely on the feedback and goodwill of others. |
| |
| <p>So once I figured this out, then I was faced with how to find an elegant way to |
| specify the path of these native libraries without having the user perform |
| too much manual configuration. I thought that I could set the <tt>java.library.path</tt> property |
| dynamically, but I was wrong. So, finally, I decided the best way is to get the |
| user to configure the <tt>java.library.path</tt> in the <tt>netbeans.conf</tt> file. I really hate |
| this solution because if you have a normal user, who does not have root or |
| administration permission, to modify <tt>netbeans.conf</tt> file, then this user cannot |
| use the Star Office module unless he or she installs a private copy of |
| NetBeans. |
| |
| <p>The other bit of fun that I had was making the module independent of |
| Star Office JARs. I did not want to to package the OfficeBean JAR, part of |
| the StarOffice distribution, with my module. I wanted the user to specify where |
| Star Office's installation is and then let the module load OfficeBean from there. |
| So, I had to use ClassLoaders and reflection to do what I wanted. It wasn't that |
| difficult once I figured out how to do this. But when I was thinking about |
| it, I was like: "How do you get the NetBeans APIs to do this and this and this?" I |
| was too focused on the NetBeans APIs and forgot completely about Java SE's SDK! |
| |
| |
| So, how this is done is by using the JDK's |
| <a href="http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4.2/docs/api/java/net/URLClassLoader.html">URLClassLoader</a> class. |
| Basically, what I had to do was to create |
| a separate class loader to load the Star Office JARs. The Star Office installation directory has |
| to be configured by the user, in the Options window. Once this is done, I create an instance |
| of the <tt>URLClassLoader</tt> class to load the appropriate JARs: |
| |
| <p><pre class="examplecode">for (String soJar: STAROFFICE_JARS) |
| if (soJar.endsWith(".jar")) |
| urls[i++] = new URL("file:///" + so + soJar); |
| else |
| urls[i++] = new URL("file:///" + soh + soJar + separator); |
| |
| loader = new URLClassLoader(urls);</pre> |
| |
| <p>Once I had created the loader, I had to load the <tt>OOoBean</tt> class and get a reference to all the |
| methods in the <tt>OOoBean</tt> class that I was going to use. The reason is that we cannot reference |
| <tt>OOoBean</tt> directly so everything has to go through reflection: |
| |
| <p><pre class="examplecode">//Loads the OOoBean class, keep fingers crossed |
| obClass = Class.forName("com.sun.star.comp.beans.OOoBean", true, loader); |
| |
| //Now get a reference to all the methods that we are going to use |
| Method[] methods = obClass.getDeclaredMethods(); |
| for (Method m: methods) |
| if (m.getName().equals("loadFromURL")) |
| loadFromURL = m; |
| else if (m.getName().equals("aquireSystemWindow")) |
| acquireSystemWindow = m; |
| else if (m.getName().equals("setMenuBarVisible")) |
| setMenuBarVisible = m; |
| ...</pre> |
| |
| <p>Now to create an instance of <tt>OOoBean</tt> and invoke <tt>setMenuBarVisible()</tt> method, I had to do this: |
| |
| <p><pre class="examplecode">//Creates a new instance of |
| Object oobean = obClass.newInstance(); |
| |
| //invoke setMenuBarVisible(true); |
| setMenuBarVisible(oobean, new Object[]{ true }); </pre> |
| |
| <p>The last major problem that I had was actually my own carelessness. I was |
| creating a value object by extending the System Option class, part of the NetBeans APIs. |
| This is to store the |
| settings that the user enters in the Options window. Anyway, I created an |
| entry in the <tt>layer.xml</tt> file and in the <tt>settings.xml</tt> file for persisting these values. I was tesing |
| this for <u>TWO DAYS</u> but could not understand why my settings were not |
| persisted. I was about to give up when I right-clicked on the <tt>settings.xml</tt> node |
| in the Projects window. I noticed that there is this item called "Validate XML". So, |
| just for the heck of it, I clicked that item... and it reported that there was an |
| unidentifiable character in my DOCTYPE tag! Sure enough, after I corrected that, |
| my values were saved! |
| |
| |
| <p><h3>Have you worked on other NetBeans modules?</h3> |
| |
| <p>Yes. In fact, Star Office for NetBeans is actually my third module. My first |
| module was for a software vendor here in Singapore. They had an application |
| framework which they developed in-house. I helped them to develop a module to |
| generate the skeleton code of their framework so that they can just |
| concentrate on the business logic. The module was based on NetBeans 3.6. |
| AFAIK, they are still using it today. Unfortunately, they have not had the time |
| to migrate to NetBeans 5. |
| |
| <p>My second module is based on NetBeans 5 and allows you to browse and start <a href="http://www.javapassion.com/handsonlabs/">hands-on-lab sessions</a> |
| inside NetBeans. As new |
| labs are published, you can update and display them from within NetBeans. It is a bit like |
| the 'Java BluePrints Solutions Catalog'. The idea behind this module is to cut down |
| the setup time when you do one of these labs. The module reads |
| configuration information inside the lab files and sets up the environment for |
| you before you begin the lab. For example, if you are doing a web serivces |
| client lab and the lab requires you to deploy a web service before you begin, |
| then the module will deploy the service before you start the lab. This is done by |
| integrating the Rhino engine into the module. This module, though complete, has |
| not been published. The reason is that I am still looking for a place to host |
| the hands-on-lab content; the other reason is that I'm waiting for Mustang to |
| be released. As you might know, Mustang will have scripting support. So, rather than relying |
| on Rhino, I might as well wait a couple of months more and have out-of-the box |
| scripting support. |
| |
| |
| |
| <p><h3>What do you enjoy about creating NetBeans modules?</h3> |
| |
| <p>I like customizing my working environment. NetBeans IDE already gives you lots |
| of options to customize, but I like making NetBeans even more productive for my |
| specific environment. |
| |
| <p>And I enjoy learning and innovating! The Star Office module was written partly because I wanted to learn about |
| Star Office and also partly for the demos and presentations that I have to present to |
| developers and customers. For example, I'd been following the FIFA World Cup and was |
| cleaning up my Star Office module. I was switching between Firefox and |
| NetBeans. Then it struck me: How difficult would it be for me to add RSS feed |
| support inside NetBeans so that I don't have to hit <tt>Alt-Tab</tt> to switch? As it |
| turns out, it was not really difficult at all. I now have toolbar that lets you select |
| a country taking part in the World Cup... |
| |
| <p><img align="center" src="nbm_interviews/chuk/worldcup1.png" alt="toolbar 1"> |
| |
| <p>...and then a related article about that country...</p> |
| |
| <p><img align="center" src="nbm_interviews/chuk/worldcup2.png" alt="toolbar 2"> |
| |
| |
| <p>...and then your browser opens and displays the article! I used <a href="https://rome.dev.java.net/">Rome</a> |
| to parse the RSS. The rest was just a rehash of |
| the <a href="https://platform.netbeans.org/tutorials/nbm-google.html">NetBeans Google Toolbar Module Tutorial</a>. |
| |
| <p>By the way, I developed a module in the NetBeans 3.6 days, and it was not fun at all. Poring |
| through those XML configuration files, creating the boiler plate code, etc. |
| Now it is just a pleasure. Want an Action? Click through this wizard and NetBeans will create |
| all the classes and the correct XML enteries for you. There are two items that |
| I find missing but it is not really that difficult to fix... creating menu bars and |
| creating the System Option class. Now that I know how to create these by hand, I'm actually |
| thinking of writing a wizard to generate the classes and populate the |
| <tt>layer.xml</tt> file for you. |
| |
| <p><h3>Have you thought about creating an application on the NetBeans Platform as well?</h3> |
| |
| <p>Yes I have. I've been developing a game. It is currently just a bunch of Java |
| classes, with my own simple framework for lifecycle management. I'm actually |
| thinking of migrating this over to the NetBeans Platform. However, this will have |
| to wait till probably the end of the year because I'm still in the middle of |
| coding the game. So, changing the underlying infrastructure at this point will |
| be unsettling. |
| |
| |
| |
| <p><h3>What are your favorite features of NetBeans IDE?</h3> |
| |
| <p>Actually, I was going to say things like Matisse and the Profiler, but after |
| thinking long and hard, I would say my absolute favourite would have to be the |
| functionality provided by Tim Lebedkov's User Tasks module and the IDE's standard |
| "To Do" feature (just go to Window > To Do). When I develop an application, I quickly |
| develop the outline of the application; I then add comments like |
| 'add listener here' or 'initialize graphics object here'. But now, with the User Tasks module, |
| and the "To Do" feature in NetBeans, I just add a comment prefixed with TODO, then use |
| NetBeans to scan and itemize these TODOs for me. I know it is a very simple |
| feature, and probably most IDEs have it, but it is the one that I cannot live without. |
| |
| |
| |
| <p>I do have one gripe with the User Tasks module. Currently, the task list is per user. So, no |
| matter how many projects you have, all your tasks from all your projects are |
| stored in a single task list. It would be really nice to be able to create |
| task lists on a per-project basis. I don't think this should be really difficult. |
| Currently, in the configuration panel, you can specify where the task |
| list file is located, for example ><tt>{userdir}{/}tasklist.ics</tt>. I think all you |
| would have to do is add another macro like <tt>{projectdir}</tt>. So now you'd specify this |
| <tt>{projectdir}{/}tasklist.ics</tt> instead. When you now create a tasklist, NetBeans |
| would expand <tt>{projectdir}</tt> to the currently active project directory and create |
| the <tt>tasklist.ics</tt> file there. For more information about this module, also |
| about where to get it from, see <a href="https://netbeans.org/community/news/edge-28.html">NetBeans Edge, Issue 28</a>. |
| |
| <p><h3>If you could change one thing in module development features in NetBeans, what would it be?</h3> |
| |
| |
| <p>Without a doubt a more user friendly interface to the <tt>layer.xml</tt> file, similar to the JNLP |
| editor. Sometimes I find my module breaking because I've inadvertently changed |
| something in the <tt>layer.xml</tt> file and I've got no clue where the error is. An editor goes |
| a long way to help enforce some of these entries. |
| |
| <p><h3>If I am an Eclipse user... what would be the main reasons for thinking about using |
| NetBeans instead, from your personal experience?</h3> |
| |
| <div style="float: left;"><img src="nbm_interviews/chuk/quote3.png" alt="quote 3"></div> |
| |
| <p>I know that getting developers to change their IDE is extremely difficult. I |
| was fixated with VIM (or VI). I'm still a VIM user but NetBeans offers some things that |
| VIM does not, such as when I'm creating a web application, NetBeans |
| allows me to view my web application as a whole application; that is, I can jump |
| from <tt>web.xml</tt> servlet entry to the source, while when I'm using VIM I'm |
| jumping around from file to file. It gives you a totally different |
| perspective. |
| |
| |
| |
| <p>I am a movie fan; one of the movies that I like is the movie called |
| "Dead Poets Society". There is this scene where Robin Williams, the teacher, |
| asks each of his students to come to the front and stand on top of the teacher's |
| desk and to look around. |
| |
| <p>The idea is to look at something familiar from a |
| different prespective. So I believe that using a different tool like |
| NetBeans can give you a totally different perspective on your application and |
| see things you never knew were there. |
| |
| |
| |
| <p>Of course, if, after investigating it, NetBeans does not offer anything |
| compelling, you can always switch back to Eclipse. So at least try it! |
| |
| <p><h3>Any final thoughts?</h3> |
| |
| <p>Can't wait for NetBeans 6. I heard at JavaOne that there is going to be an enhanced |
| editor with Jackpot integrated into the core of NetBeans IDE. Should be a great |
| combination! |
| |
| <p> |
| <p> |
| <p> |
| <p> |
| |
| <!-- ======================================================================================== --> |
| |
| <h2><a name="nextsteps"></a>Further reading</h2> |
| |
| <p>For information about creating and developing plug-in modules and rich-client applications, see the following resources: |
| <ul> |
| |
| <p><li><a href="https://platform.netbeans.org/tutorials/quickstart-nbm.html">Introduction to NetBeans Module Development</a></li> |
| <p><li><a href="https://platform.netbeans.org/tutorials/nbm-paintapp.html">Introduction to Rich-Client Application Development</a></li> |
| <p><li><a href="https://platform.netbeans.org/tutorials/index.html">NetBeans Modules and Rich-Client Applications Learning Trail</a></li> |
| <p><li><a href="https://netbeans.org/download/dev/javadoc/">NetBeans API Javadoc (Current Development Version)</a></li> |
| <p><li><a href="http://www.planetnetbeans.org">Blogs by NetBeans Engineers and NetBeans Users</a></li></ul> |
| </p> |
| |
| <hr> |
| |
| |
| </body> |
| </html> |
