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Is there a Java IDE written in Java?

I just got my year 9 DET laptop today at school, and there are all sorts of restrictions set in place. Somewhat annoyingly, you cannot run any executable other than the ones already installed on the system (for some reason they haven't disabled the use of Command Prompt, PowerShell, or strangely enough, regedit). They allow you to run Java executables, so I thought that would be the only way to be able to program on my crappy laptop at school (when I have finished all my work, naturally) :D

Edit:

By written in Java, I also mean that the executable, that is used to run the program, has the file extension ".jar", thus running on the JVM.

Edit 2:

I tried the DrJava IDE, and it worked great, thanks (I can compile and execute programs)! Regarding running Eclipse as through the command line using the command "java -jar "C:/Users.../org.eclipse..."". This results in an error producing a log saying file, the main error is:

MESSAGE An error occurred while automatically activating bundle org.eclipse.ui.workbench (182).

How do I fix this error (I much perfer working with Eclipse than any other IDE)?

Edit 3:

Regarding my last edit, just disregard it :D. I fixed the problem by downloading the latest version of Eclipse.

gnat
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Darestium
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  • Does it have the JDK (Java developer kit) installed, or just the Java runtime? If you don't have the JDK, and you can't install new executables, then you're stuck, unfortunately. – Mike Baranczak Feb 13 '12 at 06:35
  • Well, I have portable version of the JDK, in the IDE I can just set the source of the JDK for the compiler the directory where I have copied it. – Darestium Feb 13 '12 at 06:44
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    Another thing: none of the Java IDEs are just packaged as a single .jar file. The typical set-up has a small native executable that then launches the Java process. This is meant to hide the complexity. It also means that on your locked-down computer, you won't be able to launch the IDE the way it was intended, and you'll have to jump through a lot of hoops just to start it. – Mike Baranczak Feb 13 '12 at 06:47
  • What do you mean "portable version"? – Mike Baranczak Feb 13 '12 at 06:48
  • By "portable" I mean just copying the JDK files into a directory, it seems to work on the desktop computers at school, (I have eclipse on my thumbdrive and the jdk in a directory on it, And I change the config file for eclipse depending on the drive letter the thumbdrive is assigned) – Darestium Feb 13 '12 at 06:55
  • Go into the JDK on the command line, and see if you can run any of the executables in there. (The one you *absolutely* need is javac - that's the compiler.) If your description of the lock-down is correct, then you won't be able to run them - so no programming, with or without an IDE. – Mike Baranczak Feb 13 '12 at 07:05
  • Nope, cannot run executables from the command line. – Darestium Feb 13 '12 at 07:38
  • You are aware that you have to load your .jar files with a java.exe? – OliverS Feb 13 '12 at 09:38
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    I don't know a java ide that is *not* written in java (yeah yeah emacs, vim, notepad) – NimChimpsky Feb 13 '12 at 11:18
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    @NimChimpsky, Emacs JDE is quite a decent Java IDE. – SK-logic Feb 13 '12 at 12:44
  • Can you not run any executable or is it that you cannot install new software. There are executable programs that do not require installation. – Rig Feb 13 '12 at 13:30
  • I learned Java in JGRASP which is a *horrible* IDE with no useful features beyond one-click building and a debug console. It was chosen specifically to force students to memorize basic syntax and not rely on autocomplete. I can't even recall if it had syntax highlighting (I don't believe it did). – zzzzBov Feb 13 '12 at 17:39
  • Eclipse should be just a jar (although I believe they provide executable launchers--look at the linux launcher for how to do it manually). It is also distributed as a zip that you just dump into a directory--no install executable. I'm pretty sure that's all Netbeans is as well. IntelliJ is great too. Take your pick and make one work. – Bill K Feb 13 '12 at 17:56
  • @NimChimpsky: JCreator is written in C++. – Nemanja Trifunovic Feb 14 '12 at 00:30
  • @Rig No, you can not run ANY executable other then the ones pre-installed on the system, so that means no portable apps. – Darestium Feb 14 '12 at 04:34

7 Answers7

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I guess Eclipse is written in Java and is also the best IDE.

Also check tIDE and BlueJ 2.

edoreld
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RPK
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    Eclipse runs on a front end framework called SWT, which is not considered pure Java, but it does run on a std VM – Martijn Verburg Feb 13 '12 at 07:49
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    "Best IDE" - chortle - see http://programmers.stackexchange.com/questions/21987/how-are-intellij-and-eclipse-different. ;-) – Gary Feb 13 '12 at 17:43
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    Actually I'd say Eclipse was the worst of the big 3, behind Netbeans as well (at least at a superficial level)--but many places only write their plugins for Eclipse so it's the least common denominator and often you just don't have a choice. – Bill K Feb 13 '12 at 17:59
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One IDE I have been working with is Netbeans. It's a VERY popular IDE that's fully written in Java.

The best part, it's free, easy to use, and whatnot. I've found it to be very useful when trying to program Windows applications in Java. You can find some useful articles here.

Netbeans also has plugins, also written in Java if that's your interest, which can either put less weights on your shoulder and whatnot. It also works for PHP and C/C++ so it's amazing.

Bugster
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    I agree, Netbeans is really amazing! – mort Feb 13 '12 at 08:36
  • Is there an executable JAR available? The OP cannot run a native executable (.exe). – V_P Feb 13 '12 at 20:54
  • Are you trying to find Netbeans under an executable JAR form? If so, I don't think you're going to have any luck, so far I haven't seen it. I don't think you can find that, since Netbeans has alot of dependencies and files, not to mention the libraries. At it's base, it's a compiler, and it needs the full program. – Bugster Feb 13 '12 at 20:57
  • Yah, I need it in a executable jar form. – Darestium Feb 14 '12 at 04:35
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Jetbrains has recently made much of their IntelliJ IDE, which is written in Java, as open-source. Mostly what is missing in the "Community Edition" is support for web-based and enterprise apps.

You can download a binary, or download the source and source and build it yourself using the JSDK and some additional libraries.

They also sell an academic version of the full version of the IDE for $99. Here is a comparison of the free and paid versions.

tcrosley
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    However, it doesn't always run on OpenJDK too well. – Martijn Verburg Feb 13 '12 at 07:48
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    IntelliJ is where it is at. I was fortunate enough to work somewhere briefly where they bought all the developers an IntelliJ license and I was not disappointed. It is a little bit too expensive though seeing as how Eclipse is 90% there. – maple_shaft Feb 13 '12 at 12:26
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    @maple_shaft It's that extra 10% that makes all the difference. Still, Eclipse is a very good IDE. – Gary Feb 13 '12 at 17:44
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Eclipse is written in Java.

"Written in Java" - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eclipse_%28software%29

EDIT: To address the question's edit about running the IDE as a .JAR file:

"Alternatively, you can launch Eclipse by directly invoking the JVM as follows:

java -jar eclipse/plugins/org.eclipse.equinox.launcher_1.0.0.v20070606.jar "

Source: http://wiki.eclipse.org/FAQ_How_do_I_run_Eclipse%3F

Xonatron
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    Is there an executable JAR available to run eclipse? The OP cannot run native executables. – V_P Feb 13 '12 at 20:53
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    "Alternatively, you can launch Eclipse by directly invoking the JVM as follows: `java -jar eclipse/plugins/org.eclipse.equinox.launcher_1.0.0.v20070606.jar` "- http://wiki.eclipse.org/FAQ_How_do_I_run_Eclipse%3F I think this suffices? I can add it in my answer if so. – Xonatron Feb 13 '12 at 21:36
  • I jumped the gun and added it in my answer already. – Xonatron Feb 13 '12 at 22:07
  • Regrading running Eclipse as through the command line using the command "java -jar "C:/Users.../org.eclipse..."" This results in an error producing a log saying file, the main error is "!MESSAGE An error occurred while automatically activating bundle org.eclipse.ui.workbench (182).". Any Ideas on how to fix this error (I much perfer working with eclipse then any other IDE). – Darestium Feb 14 '12 at 05:54
  • @Darestium, what versions of Eclipse and JDK are you running? Perhaps open a new question on this error. – Xonatron Feb 14 '12 at 13:25
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The IDE DrJava developed at Rice University is entirely written in Java and is obtained as a jar file. It has many nice features for beginning programmers, including an Python-like interactive shell. Get it here.

ncmathsadist
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2

Can you boot from your thumb drive? If so, then that's the way to go. I'm sure you can find a version of Ubuntu or Mint that you can set up, and then you can do whatever you need.

If you can't even do that, you might want to try writing a launcher of some sort. Just a simple Java program that takes your command arguments and executes them from the Java runtime (basically Runtime.exec("your commands here");). I have no idea how they've locked down your laptop, so I can't say whether it'll work or not, but it should be quick enough to try.

TMN
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    Booting from a thumb drive is the way to go. Much better than trying to do anything with a crippled Windows installation. I don't know why I didn't think of that. If that's not possible, maybe boot from a CD; I recall Ubuntu lets you boot from the installation CD, and keep all your user data on the Windows partition. – Mike Baranczak Feb 14 '12 at 04:08
  • No, I have to acsess to the BIOS (password set by the DET), and the first boot option is the hard drive, it's a netbook, so there is no acsess to a cd drive, and you cannot boot from a thumbdrive due to the boot order. – Darestium Feb 14 '12 at 04:37
  • @Darestium - I take it that this machine belongs to the school system, and not to you. So trying to crack the BIOS would be illegal, and I *certainly* wouldn't recommend that sort of thing. – Mike Baranczak Feb 15 '12 at 18:51
  • Yes, exactly, so I guess running a java file is OK, because java is also preinstalled with the system. So I don't see anything wrong with running a program that is supported by default. – Darestium Feb 15 '12 at 20:47
  • @TMN, yes I have tryed that, a friend also suggested doing that, but sadly it did not work :( – Darestium Mar 13 '12 at 09:57
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Though, I am not sure if I would label it an "IDE", it is a text editor centred around programmers and does come in executable JAR format. Take a look at jEdit, I have provided a link below to the download page.

In your case, you would download the Java-based installer.

http://www.jedit.org/index.php?page=download

There are many plugin(s) available, so, you could essentially build it into an IDE. It got a favourable reception as well, you can see this on the Wikipedia page below.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JEdit

V_P
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