Powerful Open-Source IDE
February 01, 2018
Powerful Open-Source IDE
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Overall Satisfaction with Eclipse
We were evaluating different types of software for a client and some on the short list of software we were evaluating were using eclipse as their development platform as well as their business-facing application. In short, they were using Eclipse for both dev and client. The reason why they used Eclipse is that they wanted to develop on Java and Eclipse is friendly to that programming language, however, the UI was very difficult to use on Eclipse.
- Eclipse is very Java-friendly so developing applications on Eclipse has many handy tools for that purpose
- Eclipse is open-source so if you don't like something, someone has a fix for it. Or you can change it!
- Eclipse is widely used so if you have experience with Eclipse, you're likely to run into it again.
- Some of the UI controls are difficult to use. For example, there have been instances where I could barely see the UI controls, and there was no way to enlarge them. Which was frustrating.
- Eclipse itself has a learning curve to it. If this is your first real IDE, you should take some time to learn all the controls to get the most out of Eclipse.
- In the past, graphic rendering can take a long time depending on how fast your computer is. My computer is quite capable but sometimes still Eclipse performance issues.
- It is open-source so being free is always a plus!
- Development times have been sped up by using the Eclipse tools.
- Since everything is customizable, I've met some people that created tools that automated a lot of the mundane work regarding mainframe development which saved the company time and money.
- JCreator, BlueJ and Sublime Text 3
The IDEs I listed above are good alternatives to those who are looking for very lightweight and easy-to-use IDEs. Whether it's for first-time programmers or people looking for a really simple solution, these could work for you. Sublime Text 3 specifically for lightweight users. Many students I know use JCreator as their first IDE, it is not quite as powerful as Eclipse but it is a good stepping stone for users.