Which Eclipse version: Java, RCP or "Eclipse Classic"?

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+1 Q:

Which Eclipse version: Java, RCP or "Eclipse Classic"?

The following link states that "A Java or RCP version of Eclipse is recommended. For Eclipse 3.5, the "Eclipse Classic" version is recommended."

http://developer.android.com/sdk/installing.html

However, Eclipse 3.6 is available and as a total newbie I am not sure whether the recommendation for "Eclipse Classic" over RCP (or Java) still holds true.

Can you clarify?

Thanks you.

+2 A:

Just follow the recommendation and download and install eclipse classic 3.6 for a start, then add the android. You can always add additional eclipse functionality (plugins) later without breaking or loosing something.

Here is a page to compare the distributions.

Classic is a good choice. Alternativly I'd choose not RCP but 'Modeling' because it includes Mylin (task management) and install the XML tools later on (nice XML viewer/editor).

Andreas_D 2010-08-12 06:50:13

Thanks, Andreas_D. I missed the link within the Eclipse download page that says "Compare Packages". This comparison matrix is priceless.It helped me understand that RCP is the "common denominator" (minimal set of plugins) to all packages, but it shouldn't be confused with the RCP/Plugin *package*, which is not truly minimal (it includes Mylyn and ECF among other plugins). In fact, even the "Classic" package cannot be labeled minimal because there are other packages with even fewer plugins (e.g. Javascript).BTW, both RCP and Modeling include Mylyn. Only Modeling includes CVS.

Android Eve 2010-08-12 15:18:08

For the record, I decided to go with the Classic package.

I am detailing my decision considerations, hoping that this could be helpful to future Android newbies:

Aside from the ubiquitous RCP/Platform, the only plugin common to all 3 Android recommended packages (Java, RCP and Classic) is JDT.

In the near term, I don't expect to develop Eclipse plugins (PDE), but I do use version control (CVS). The "Java package" seems to best fit this.

On the other hand, the "Java package" also includes EMF, GEF, Mylyn and XML Tools. In my android project, it is unlikely that I will need EMF, GEF and XML Tools. Mylyn, on the other hand, sounds very interesting, perhaps even useful. :)

It is unknown to me how clean or easy a plugin un-installation is. I always prefer leaner & cleaner environments (lesser probability for contention), so the easiest route seems to be installing "Classic", removing PDE, then adding Mylyn.

Hence, Classic.

Android Eve 2010-08-12 17:14:25

While the above still holds true, I just noticed android's warning: "There are known issues with the ADT plugin running with Eclipse 3.6. Please stay on 3.5 until further notice." - so I will be downloading 3.5.2 Classic which, interesting enough, is almost 100MB larger than the Java package.

Android Eve 2010-08-12 20:01:41

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Which Eclipse version: Java, RCP or "Eclipse Classic"?

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