Eclipse for Rails - FAQ
Last updated on July 17, 2007 4:05 PM
Why are you doing this when RadRails is so popular?
The idea behind Eclipse For Rails started several months before RadRails was released. I imagine that the RadRails team was either inspired by my work or had a similar desire to use Eclipse for Ruby on Rails development.
RadRails just didn't scratch the itches we had so I decided to stay with my approach. In 2006, I packaged it up as a downloadable version. In my opinion, this is still the best IDE you can get for Windows.
Why doesn't the upgrade manager work?
In order to keep the file size small, I run a script that scraps all of the unnecessary source files. This saves over 150 MB of space, but for some reason it breaks the Eclipse Update Manager. If I get enough requests from users, I'll be sure to post the original package without any changes. It'd be around 200 MB though, and more once it's expanded.
How do I perform an upgrade?
All settings are stored in the workspace directory which is located within the installation folder. Your project files are located there too. To successfully upgrade, you'll need to perform the following steps:
That should do it. The projects should work fine. It's even easier if you just use Subversion, as you can just check your projects out again on a fresh install.
- Rename the original installation folder to c:\rails2
- Install Eclipse for Rails
- Move everything in c:\rails2\workspace to c:\rails\workspace except for the .metadata folder.
- Run Eclipse for Rails
- Right-click on the Resources page, and choose Import
- Select Import Existing Project Into Workspace
- Browse to c:\rails\workspace
- Select each project you want to import by checking the corresponding box
- Ensure that the option to copy files into the workspace has not been checked, and press OK.
Why is there no version for OSX?
OSX already has the best Rails editor, TextMate. There's no reason to release this on the Mac.
Is there a version for Linux?
Not publicly, but you can ask for it. It's also available on the blog.
Why are you taking donations?
I released this for free, I spend my free time maintaining it and keeping it current, but I'm doing it because I want to use it on Windows. If you get some joy out of it, or it helps you get your work done, a small donation would help to cover bandwidth costs.
How long will you be supporting this?
For as long as it's useful. Aptana now runs RadRails, and there are a few other Windows editors. However, as long as people still want to use this, I'll find the time to update it.
How often do you update?
I try to do a new release every three months, based on when Eclipse or the Web Tools projects do a new revision. Since upgrading can be a pain, I try to minimize the number of revisions.
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