as most of us surely do every now and then, I try to improve my workflow. As Eclipse is my main IDE, I wondered if it may be possible to use it without mouse. I browsed the available shortcuts and tried to use them instead of my mouse. I found interesting features like Ctrl+3 which opens something like the Apple spotlight.
I know there are a lot of questions concerning favorite shortcuts etc. but I'd like to know if it works because at the moment it feels a bit squishy 100% without mouse.
So is anyone out there using Eclipse like that? And are there some hints to ease the change?
Yes, it is possible. For a start, check out 10 Eclipse navigation shortcuts every java programmer should know. When you use these 10 shortcuts and some of the shortcuts of the comments, you will already see a big performance boost.
The "open type" and "open resource" dialogs are CamelCase-sensitive, so when typing "NPE" in the open type dialog, I get two matching items NoPermissionException and NullPointerException. So using good names with consistent spelling is a must.
Ctrl+F11 starts a program, F11 debugs it. Note howewer to check if in Window-Preferences-Run/Debug-Launching the value of "Launch Operation" is set to your needs.
You may want to customize the search dialog (Ctrl+h) to only show the file search (default is to context sensitively present you with different search tabs).
Ctrl+n allows you to create something new (opens a wizard with an initial filter text to filter the possible next pages).
I'm a blind programmer who uses eclipse. While there are plenty of shortcuts I find people often overlook using menus from the keyboard. If there's a function you use a lot that doesn't appear to be supported with keyboard shortcuts you can either create a shortcut to it in prefferences or use keyboard shortcuts such as alt+f to access the file menu and a one letter combination that allows you to access the item. For example hit alt+f then a to access the save as dialog. The underlined letter is the one you want to hit once in the menu.
There are a couple of things you can do to improve your keyboard:mouse usage ratio with Eclipse.
First off, if you push Ctrl-Shift-L, it shows you a master list of all the shortcuts you can use. If you know what you want to do, this is usually a quicker way of doing it without having to dig through menus, and as a bonus, you will learn some shortcuts you didn't know before.
The other thing you can try is a plugin called MouseFeed which looks promising. It tells you the shortcut for any menu item you use and if there isn't one, reminds you to create one. It essentially acts as training wheels until you become as close to 100% keyboard use as possible. I'm not sure how well it works in 3.4, but you can give it a shot.
Hope that helps.
Here you get an Eclipse Shortcut Overview PDF file of all key bindings. This file you can print and put beside your keyboard if you wish.
Related
I absolutely adore Eclipse's Quick Fix functionality.
It is so useful, so smart, just so well implemented.. it could use a "final touch of nicety" as far as I am concerned: an "I am feeling lucky" shortcut.
If COMMAND/CTRL 1 gives me a menu of Quick Fixes to choose from.. I'd like for something like COMMAND/CTRL SHIFT 1 (I need to think a proper shortcut for this) to immediately choose the first (highest likelihood of being right) fix and implement it for me.
Can I already do this with existing features that allow keyboard shortcut customisation?
This is inspired by just how good the current guessing and ordering of options is. It is so good for me that most of the time I wanna choose the top option. I think any "I am feeling lucky" which can be undone by COMMAND/CTRL Z is a good candidate to being done with one click? I would exclude, of course, the changes that bring up a "choice dialog", like previewing source code changes with potential adverse side-effects..
That's not possible with Eclipse built-in tooling. There are some workarounds, that might fit your needs:
Use some kind of keyboard macro tool (independent of Eclipse) to play the Ctrl1, Enter sequence when you hit your combination of choice.
Some quickfixes can be assigned a keyboard shortcut in the keyboard preferences of Eclipse. So you could choose certain quickfixes directly (but not as the top suggestion).
Some quickfixes are also available as save actions (for example "organize imports"). You should activate all those in the save actions, as you can then run them by just saving the file.
Is it possible to replace Eclipse search dialog to something more convenient, like the search dialog in Firefox or Chrome? The default one doesn't support F3 to search for the next match, it doesn't move itself away if the match is underneath the box and doesn't allow to highlight all the matches - and these are the features I really miss...
I don't think you can replace the Find dialog easily. You would probable need to (re-)write parts of Eclipse. Definitely doable, but not a small task...
That said, most of your problems can probably be addressed by the current dialog:
The default one doesn't support F3 to search for the next match
"search next match" is Ctrl-K by default. You can configure the keybindings under "Preferences / General / Keys": change the keybinding for "Find Next".
it doesn't move itself away if the match is underneath the box
Yes, that would be nifty. The dialog does however remember where you last put it, so just put it somewhere out of the way (e.g. over the package browser, or to the right), and it will stay there.
and doesn't allow to highlight all the matches
This is not yet available (though it has been discussed: https://bugs.eclipse.org/bugs/show_bug.cgi?id=29692 ). There are however two ways of getting a similar result:
Use the search function from the toolbar ("File Search" from the "torch" button). If you search there, it will highlight all matches in the editor (and provide marks in the editor ruler, and a list in the search view).
For Java elements, activate "Mark Occurences" ("highlight pen" button). This will highlight all occurences of a Java element if you mark in in the editor.
Maybe one of these will help you.
Finally, you can just open any file in an external editor (like (g)vim or Notepad++) right from inside Eclipse (right-click -> Open with). Then you can use any editor you want...
While it may not be exactely what you want, have you ever used the incremental search (Ctrl + J)? In my opinion it is much more convenient than the standard search.
A newer alternative is InstaSearch.
Information:
InstaSearch is an Eclipse plug-in for doing fast text search in the workspace. The search is performed instantly as-you-type and resulting files are displayed in an Eclipse view. It is a lightweight plug-in based on Apache Lucene search engine.
Each file then can be previewed using few most matching and relevant lines. A double-click on the match leads to the matching line in the file.
The "search the next match" is Ctrl-K. Previous is also available, see the "Edit" menu...
Only the highlight feature does not seem to be present. You might need a plugin for that (everythinhg is possible with plugins).
There was a Summer of Code project to implement a Firefox like search in Eclipse in 2007.
This is the official page, and this Blog shows a promising screenshot.
I never tried to install it, and I didn't find a final release or something though :(
SearchTab is an Eclipse plugin that shows a Firefox-like search tab
You do this by changing the key bindings under Preferences -> General -> Keys
One thing really really annoys me about the Eclipse ide: its find UI is so old style.
I would much prefer something like Firefox or Safari, that doesn't clutter my screen real estate with a useless window.
(source: eclipse-blog.org)
Press ctrl+j. Is that what you want?
Hold down shift to go backwards.
you can also select the word you want to search and use ctrl+K, use shift to go backwards.
And, if Eclipse's incremental search is not enough, you could always use a plugin like Glance.From their site:
Glance is an Eclipse plug-in providing extensible useful incremental text search in Eclipse. This plug-in supports the following features:
highlight all found matches
background search which never blocks text box
search in tables and trees
update matches when target content changed
new text containers can be supported through extension points
a lot of search settings
You mean, like... Ctrl+F, and then Ctrl+K?
You don't have to use the Search menu.
On the other hand, if you just don't like the popup dialog, I think you're SOL for now.
The Eclipse "find" dialog does more than "find" on browsers you mentioned (e.g. search-and-replace, etc.) Having more options means more real estate to control them.
Is anyone aware of any method (or external plugin) that would allow for nested editor tabs? It would be nice to be able to group related open files into their own "master" tabs, but I'm not sure if this is even possible. Any ideas?
This is totally non-obvious, and I discovered it by accident, but...
If you click on a tab and start dragging it downwards, once you get more than half-way down the editor pane, a horizontal line will appear. Let go, and now you'll have two different editor panes, each with tabs of documents. Now you can drag tabs up and down between the two panes to see different documents at the same time.
I think that's as close as you can get.
I think the best you can currently do is "Window->New Window" and then use each new window as a separate "tab" of related editors. Not exactly ideal, I admit.
It's a cool idea though, especially if you could have shortcuts or something that open groups of editors with a single command.
This definitely isn't possible in the current RCP. You might be able to construct an editor component which created a CTabFolder and delegated to other editor components, but I'm not sure how well that would work.
There are Perspectives in Eclipse that you might use to achieve something close, they are more global things though...
But I agree with you, I would like this feature as well! This would be also very useful when editing many files that have the same name but come from different packages, because now it's a mess >_<
For me the utility of such a feature is to reduce context switching time. I'm working on project A, have lots of editors open, now I need to drop that and work on project B. I want to keep all the editors open associated with project A but hide them while I work on B. When I'm done with B, I can pick up right where I left off in A without having to find and open all those A files again; I can even leave them unsaved indefinitely, since Juno never crashes!! :)
I have used the New Window feature, and it's great, but the new window needs a bunch of configuration (closing Views I don't need, moving stuff around to where I want it, opening Views I had open in the old window, and so on) before I can get to work. It also uses a lot more memory than a simple tab group would since it seems to be a complete new copy of Eclipse.
The split-window feature is great and I use it all the time. It is indeed tab groups, and if there were a way to hide a tab group, and for each tab group to have its own tab list (the thing you get when you click ">>5" so you can see editors you have open that don't fit in the tab header), it would totally fill the bill.
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I have been using Eclipse as an IDE for a short amount of time (about 3 months of full use) and almost every day I learn about some shortcut or feature that I had absolutely no idea about. For instance, just today I learned that Ctrl+3 was the shortcut for a Quick Access window.
I was wondering what your most useful/favorite Eclipse features are. With the IDE being so big, it would be helpful to learn about the more commonly used parts of the program.
My most commonly used features are
ctrl+1 quick-fix / spell-checker
opening files
ctrl+shift+t load class file by classname
ctrl+shift+r load any file by filename
matches are made on the start of the class/filename. start your search pattern with a * to search anywhere within the filename/classname.
Formatting
ctrl+shift+f Format source file
(set up your formatting style in Window | preferences | java | code style | formatter)
ctrl+shift+o Organise imports
Generated code
alt+s,r to generate getters and setters
alt+s,v to insert method signatures for overidden methods from superclass or interface
Refactorings
alt+shift+l Extract text-selection as local variable (really handy in that it determines and inserts the type for you.
alt+shift+m Extract text-selection as a method
alt+shift+i inline selected method
Running and debugging.
alt+shift+x is a really handy prefix to run stuff in your current file.
alt+shift+x, t run unit tests in current file
alt+shift+x, j run main in current file
alt+shift+x, r run on server
There are more. The options are shown to you in the lower-right popup after hitting alt+shift+x.
alt+shift+x can be switched for alt+shift+d in all the above examples to run in the debugger.
Validation
As of the recent Ganymede release, you can now switch of validation in specified files and folders. I've been waiting for this feature for ages.
Go to Project | Properties | Validation
click on the ... button in the settings column of the validator you want to shut up
Add a rule to the exclude group
code navigation
hold down ctrl to make all variables, methods and classnames hyperlinks to their definitions.
alt+left to navigate back to where you clicked ctrl
alt+right to go "forwards" again
This is cool: If someone has emailed you a stack trace, you can copy and paste the stack trace into Eclipse's Console window. You can then click on class names in the stack trace as if your own code had generated it.
In terms of actual features, rather than shortcuts, I strongly recommend taking a look at Mylyn.
It essentially skins Eclipse with a task focussed view. It tracks the files you touch when working on a task, and focusses many aspects of the UI onto the resources that it decides are relevant to the job in hand. Eclipse can be somewhat busy to look at, especially with a big multi module project, and Mylyn helps cut through the cruft. The connectivity to issue tracking software and source control repositories is also excellent.
In my experience, it polarises opinion amongst those who try working with it, which is probably a sign that it is offering something interesting... Don't mean to sound like a fanboy - it is definitely worth a look though.
A shortcut that I use everyday is Ctrl+K. In your editor (not only Java file), simply select a text (like a variable, a function, etc.), and then use this shortcut to go to the next occurrence of this text in the current editor.
It's faster than using the Ctrl+F shortcut...
Note also that you can use Ctrl+Shift+K to search backwards.
Ctrl-Alt (up/down) Copy selected line(s) above or below current line.
Alt (up/down) Move current (or multiple selected) lines up or down
Ctrl-Shift-R Bring up the resource window, start typing to find class/resource
Ctrl-O Bring up all methods and fields for the current class. Hitting it again will bring up all methods and fields for current class and super classes.
Ctrl-/ or Ctrl-Alt-C Comment single or multiple lines with //
Ctrl-Shift-/ Comment selected lines with /* */
Ctrl-. Take you to the next error or warning line
CTRL+PAGE DOWN / CTRL+PAGE UP to switch between opened editors
CTRL+E to also switch between opened editors (allows to type the name)
CTRL+O is extremely important for me. You don't longer need the Outline View then (you can close it which will give you more space). Then, you can type a method name or just the beginning of it and you quickly can get to it. I also use it to inspect what stuff is available. For example: CTRL+O and then type get ... now I see all getters.
F3 while an element is selected in the code: brings you to its definition or it's source. e.g. used on a method call it brings you into the source code of that method.
CTRL+M to maximize the current window
As already said, CTRL+3 is extremely good. It basically allows you to use Eclipse completely without a mouse. Just type CTRL+3 and then package explorer for example.
CTRL+F8 cycle trough perspectives
CTRL+L allows to type a line number and brings you directly to that line.
CTRL+SHIFT+G searches for all references to the selected element in the workspace.
And not a shortcut: In the project settings under Java Editor you can find Save Actions. This allows you to set up the project so that the code is automatically cleaned up and formatted when you save a file. That's very good it safes you from constantly pressing CTRL+O and CTRL+F.
Eclipse auto refresh isn't on by default so if you make changes to a file outside of eclipse, the change won't be reflected in your build. this is very annoying if you just did an svn/git update/rebase and things aren't working the way they're supposed to.
Turn it on in windows->preferences->workspace and tick Refresh Automatically.
Local History
It's a great feature. Eclipse has its own mini-CVS for all files in a project. If you want to revert some change you made, or even restore deleted file - you can right click on the project and select "Restore from Local History".
Just saved my ass *tears of joy*
CTRL+Shift+P to jump to the matching bracket/parenthesis.
One key feature: Shift+Alt+T for the refactoring menu.
Ctrl-shift-T, but only type the initial characters (and even a few
more) of the class you're looking
for. For example, you can type
"NetLi" to find NetworkListener
In the Search window, Ctrl-. takes you to the first leaf of a tree branch
Alt-/ is Word Completion. Slightly different from Ctrl-space
CTRL+SHIFT+X selected text becomes UPPERCASE
CTRL+SHIFT+Y selected text becomes lowercase
I'd like to add two additional shortcuts:
CTRL+F6 Switch between open editors (CTRL+SHIFT+F6 to scroll through the list in the opposite direction)
CTRL+F11 start program in debug mode
F11 start program in normal mode
A lot of the key bindings depend on the perspective and view currently active.
My most used ones for the Java perspective:
ctrl-shift-r open resource
ctrl-shift-t open type
ctrl-1 quick fix/refactor
ctrl-j incremental search
ctrl-h search in files (select a base directory and set scope to selected resources)
ctrl-o list methods
ctrl-alt-h open call hierarchy
ctrl-shift-l list shortcut keys
hit ctrl-shift-l again to go directly to preferences to change key mappings
I am also a fan of Eclipse, however since I spend a majority of my time in Visual Studio, I will suggest that you read Eric Sink's series of articles "C# to Java" (parts 1-4). Not only is Eric always an entertaining read, but this brief series covers some awesome Eclipse insight for those who have not been into Eclipse or have been away from it for a while:
From C# to Java: Part 1
From C# to Java: Part 2
From C# to Java: Part 3
From C# to Java: Part 4
Ctrl-Shift-M while the cursor is on a class name in your java file, will specifically add that and only that class to your imports. This is different from Ctrl-Shift-O which will not only add those imports not already defined, but will also remove imports not currently needed, something you might not necessarily want to do.
I forgot about [Ctrl+2 -> r] scope variable rename. Place the cursor in the variable you wish to rename, press Ctrl+2, then r, then type the new name watching all instances of that variable get renamed at the same time.
It's awesome at refactoring Hungarian Notation.
alt-shift-a is extremely useful in a few situations.
I use a lot of the above and also like for quick search: CTRL+J then type what I am looking for, then CTRL+K for next occurrence.
Lately I've been using the MouseFeeds plugin to automatically tell me what the key stroke combinations are. That way by repetition I remember them better.
This link has a better picture and description of what it looks like and does.
Shift+Alt+b for the simple navigation row over the editor.
I've just released this blog post about Top 5 Useful Hidden Eclipse Features. It contains:
Favorites: Types and members that will always show up in auto-completion
The awesome block selection mode: For multi-line editing
The EGit staging view: Much better than git itself
Type filters: To remove awt and java.lang.Object stuff from auto-completion
Formatter tags: To delimit code sections that shouldn't be auto-formatted
Alt+left and Alt+ right will navigate you forward and back.
I find the project-specific settings useful in Eclipse 3.3.
For example, if you have several developers working on a project who have different code styles for curly braces, line spacing, number of imports etc. then you can specify the style settings for the project. Then you can configure the save actions so that the code is automatically formatted when a file is saved. The result is everyone's code is formatted the same before it's checked in.