The IDE provides wizards for bundling various supporting items
with your module. Using these wizards means you can
simply point-and-click at the items you want to include, and then the IDE
does all the work for you.
You can use wizards to quickly and easily bundle the following items
with your module:
Libraries. To bundle a class library so that it
appears in the user's Library Manager, you need a J2SE library descriptor.
A J2SE library descriptor is an XML file that, when registered in the layer.xml file,
adds a new class library to the IDE's
Library Manager. Whenever the module containing the library descriptor
is enabled, the library is present in the Library Manager. For example,
Struts support provides the Struts libraries in the Library Manager.
For an example of a scenario where you might create
a J2SE library descriptor, see the
Project Templates. Project templates are used when users begin to create
their own project. For example,
in the IDE a user chooses the 'Web Application' project template in the New Project wizard, then the IDE
creates a project consisting of a JSP file, a web.xml file, a server-specific deployment file,
and project metadata within a specific structure that is useful for web application projects.
For an example of creating a module that registers a new project template, see the
Project Samples. Project samples that illustrate
some aspect of project functionality are often provided by modules
that inject a new technology into the IDE. For example,
in the Samples directory within the New Project wizard, an Anagram Game is included
to demonstrate J2SE functionality. A sample is a kind of project template; it
has the same behavior as a project template, but it is used for a different purpose.
For an example of creating a module that registers a new project sample, see the
Private Update Center URLs. When you bundle the URL to
a private update center,
you help your users, because they will not need to register your update center
manually. Instead, when they install your module, your update center
will automatically be declared in the Update Center wizard. As a result, when
your users go to Tools > Update Center, they will immediately see your
update center in the 'Select Update Center(s) to connect' list. An update
center declaration consists of the URL to the autoupdate descriptor and
a display name.
JavaHelp Help Sets. The IDE provides a number of JavaHelp help sets. You can
add your own, or, if you are creating an application on top of the NetBeans Platform,
you can provide a help set specifically for your application. (You can also hide help
sets provided by other modules.) The files required
for a JavaHelp help set can be generated for you by the IDE. Registration of the
help set in the IDE can also be automated. As a result, you do not need to think
about these infrastuctural matters, so that you can focus your time and
energy on the content of your help set.
License. With the creation of any software, there
is often a need for that software to have a software license.
The IDE's support for creating modules allows
you to add a license to the module that is under
creation.