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Build Perl applications with Eclipse

Use EPIC to build, edit, and develop

Martin Brown (mcb@mcslp.com), Freelance Writer, Consultant

Martin Brown has been a professional writer for more than eight years. He is the author of numerous books and articles across a range of topics. His expertise spans myriad development languages and platforms -- Perl, Python, Java, JavaScript, Basic, Pascal, Modula-2, C, C++, Rebol, Gawk, Shellscript, Windows, Solaris, Linux, BeOS, Mac OS/X and more -- as well as Web programming, systems management and integration. Martin is a regular contributor to ServerWatch.com, LinuxToday.com and IBM developerWorks, and a regular blogger at Computerworld, The Apple Blog and other sites, as well as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for Microsoft.

Summary: The EPIC project lets developers build, edit, and develop Perl-based applications using the Eclipse IDE. In this tutorial, we look at the EPIC plug-in, how it can be used to develop Perl applications, and how it can be integrated into existing development processes.

Date: 17 Jan 2006
Level: Intermediate
PDF: A4 and Letter (1586 KB | 31 pages)Get Adobe® Reader®

Activity: 76613 views
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Before you start

For many Perl programmers, the typical development environment is probably an editor like Emacs coupled with a command-line environment. The problem is you tend to spend most of your day switching between Emacs and the command line, and it gets worse if you are doing Web development, as you have to switch between Emacs, your command line, and your Web browser as you write, execute, and check logs for information. Surprisingly, there are few IDEs that have really captured the Perl programmer's imagination over the years, which is why EPIC and Eclipse fills such a void.

EPIC is a complete plug-in suite that supports a new "nature" within Eclipse. The EPIC plug-in incorporates extensions to the editor so that it understands Perl structure and layout. The plug-in also adds additional views and interfaces to your code, and related information enables you to view documentation, execute your Perl applications, and debug them.

About this tutorial

This tutorial will look at the basics of the EPIC plug-in before moving on to an examination of the EPIC system using a real-world example, developing a small module and script entirely within Eclipse that supports RSS parsing. You'll use this as an opportunity to examine other areas, such as the integration with Perldoc, code folding and refactoring -- all of which can make the application development process run more smoothly. By the end, you will have a good understanding of how the EPIC plug-in can be used to develop your Perl applications within Eclipse.

Prerequisites

You will need the following tools before you can make good use of EPIC:

Eclipse V3.0 or 3.1
Java technology V1.3, 1.4, or higher
Perl V5.8.6 or higher. A version of Perl is included with most UNIX® and Linux® installations, and Mac OS X. On Windows®, use ActivePerl.
1. PadWalker Perl module at CPAN.
2. EPIC (Eclipse Perl Integration), an open source Perl IDE for the Eclipse platform at SourceForge.