Rich Client Platform/Custom Look and Feel
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The presentation of your Rich Client Platform application can be changed using the org.eclipse.ui.presentationFactories extension point.
This example will show how to use the R2.1 presentation, provided by the org.eclipse.ui.presentations.r21 plugin, in the RCP Browser Example application. Here is a screen shot of the browser example using the R2.1 presentation.
The following steps will deploy the plugin into the RCP application and activate it by setting some preferences.
- Deploy the RCP browser example by following these instructions.
- Build and deploy the org.eclipse.ui.presentations.r21 plugin.
- Copy the file eclipse/plugins/org.eclipse.ui.presentations.r21_3.1.0/r21presentation.ini into the directory eclipse/plugins/org.eclipse.ui.examples.rcp.browser_3.1.0.
- Edit eclipse/plugins/org.eclipse.ui.examples.rcp.browser_3.1.0/plugin.xml so that the products extension looks like:
<extension
point="org.eclipse.core.runtime.products"
id="product">
<product
name="%productName"
application="org.eclipse.ui.examples.rcp.browser.app">
<property
name="appName"
value="%swtAppName"/>
<property
name="windowImages"
value="icons/eclipse.gif,icons/eclipse32.gif"/>
<property
name="aboutText"
value="%aboutText"/>
<property
name="aboutImage"
value="icons/eclipse_lg.gif"/>
<property
name="preferenceCustomization"
value="r21presentation.ini"/>
</product>
</extension>
- If you are not using the update configurator, then remember to edit the osgi.bundles property (in ./eclipse/configuration/config.ini) to include the new plug-in.
- Run:
eclipse.exe -clean(the -clean argument forces eclipse to check for newly installed or removed plug-ins)
Custom window layout
It is also possible to have a custom layout of the overall workbench window, by overriding WorkbenchWindowAdvisor.createWindowContents(Shell). For example, some applications use this to add a branding banner at the top. Note that this mechanism is independent of the presentation mechanism described above.
More information
- Presentation API Javadoc
- The org.eclipse.ui.examples.presentation plug-in (not shipped) contains some example presentation implementations.
- PPT slides from the EclipseCon 2005 talk "Presentations API - the look and feel of Eclipse".
- Martin Perez's blog entry on presentations
- Jeff McAffer and Jean-Michel Lemieux's, "Eclipse Rich Client Platform" discusses customizing the presentation in chapter 19.
Other presentation implementations
- VS Presentation by Willian Mitsuda
- Extended VS Presentation by Andrei Loskutov (based on Willian's)
- Nebula PShelf-based Presentation (alpha version)
- Eclipse metal
- MP3 Manager Presentation by Kai Tödter