Hiya, I'm currently in the process of writing some articles on using Oracle JDeveloper. This is a short excerpt from the first section of my first article. I'd just like a heads up as to any major problems with the way I've written things, and general comments. Like I said, it is rather short and just part of a larger piece.

The Tutorial:
Objective: To be able to produce a JSP application that utilizes some features of JDeveloper and an Oracle Database.
Target Audience: Casual Java programmers; Web Applications developers, in PHP; Amateur programmers;
Scope: The bare features required to put out an application, and the coding tools that people can use without trying to teach them Java. The focus remains on JDeveloper, not Java.
Timeframe: Beyond installation, thirty minutes or so.

And the stuff so far:
JDeveloper
Downloading and Installing

This tutorial depends on files that are freely available for download from the Oracle Technology Network (OTN), though you will need to register an account. The OTN is essentially a huge knowledgebase and "Technology Club" that is run by Oracle. It provides a vast array of articles on technologies from Windows Server Systems to Java and PHP, as well as forums that are amongst the most helpful I've ever used. So, first things first, Download!

We want "Oracle JDeveloper 10g Release 3 (10.1.3.2.0)". It's a .zip file and it will run under Linux, Windows and Mac. Nifty or what? It's a rather large download, 448MB in total. I feel really bad for you in you're on 56k. Well, no I don't. I'm actually laughing at you right now. Go for a run or something while it downloads...

First up, extract the .zip file to the directory that you want to have it stored in. JDeveloper doesn't install; everything that it needs is right inside that .zip file. If you are on Windows, though, I might advise extracting the archive to "C:/Program Files/Oracle/JDeveloper". For Linux users, the choice is a little more difficult. I personally prefer to keep things in my home folder, and I have a nice little structure going for myself. Do what feels right, though. There is no universal rule. I'm going to use "~/Java/IDE/Oracle/". Extract away!

Windows users have this next bit easy. It's sad how easy it is, actually. Simply execute "<Path to JDeveloper>/JDeveloper.exe". Bastards. Linux folk have to go to a little more trouble. Use your favourite archive manager to get the file out. The rest of this paragraph is for Linuxers only. You will need to tell Oracle whereabouts your Java 2 SE installation is. Once again, I have my in my home directory.
Get yourself connected with Java at the Sun Download Page, JDK 6 is what I am using; feel free to choose something else, but I can't cover you for it. I am using the Linux self-extracting file. It's a rather nice and simple process.
Code:
sanjay@sanjay-desktop:~/Desktop$ mv jdk-6u1-linux-i586.bin ~/Java/
sanjay@sanjay-desktop:~/Desktop$ cd ~/Java/
sanjay@sanjay-desktop:~/Java$ chmod +x jdk-6u1-linux-i586.bin
sanjay@sanjay-desktop:~/Java$ ./jdk-6u1-linux-i586.bin
And bam, you've got Java! Now, launch time!

Code:
sanjay@sanjay-desktop:~/Java/IDE/Oracle/jdevstudiobase10132.zip_FILES/jdev/bin$ ./jdev

Oracle JDeveloper 10g 10.1.3.2
Copyright 1997, 2006 Oracle.  All Rights Reserved

Type the full pathname of a J2SE installation (or Ctrl-C to quit), the path will be stored in ~/.jdev_jdk
/home/sanjay/Java/jdk1.6.0_01/
<Oracle JDeveloper splash screen launches>

Make sure you keep your eyes on your taskbar, a new window will open warning you about your version of the JDK. I waited a good five minutes before I noticed mine :-(.


Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Please note that this is by no means finished or polished, and I understand that the above is very simple to some people. However, I'm looking for feedback on my style and general feel.


Thanks
CNSW