Project Plan For Eclipse Project, version 4.0

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Release Deliverables
• Release Milestones
• Target Environments
• Compatibility with Previous Releases
• Themes and Priorities
• Appendix

Last revised 10:00 ET July 20, 2010.

Please send comments about this plan to the eclipse-dev@eclipse.org developer mailing list.

This document lays out the feature and API set for the next feature release of the Eclipse SDK after 3.6, designated release 4.0. This is a special release of the Eclipse project, whose only goal is to adopt technology from the e4 incubator while maintaining full API compatibility with previous releases. There are very few new features for end users in this release, and no changes at all in the JDT and PDE sub-projects. The end result will be a release with a similar feature set to the Eclipse project 3.6 (Helios) release, but with a brand new implementation of the platform user interface under the covers. Since this is effectively a 1.0 release of this new implementation, we expect it to be a bit rough around the edges, with slightly less polish than earlier releases built on the old workbench technology.

Plans do not materialize out of nowhere, nor are they entirely static. To ensure the planning process is transparent and open to the entire Eclipse community, we (the Eclipse Project PMC) post plans in an embryonic form and revise them throughout the release cycle.

The first part of the plan deals with the important matters of release deliverables, release milestones, target operating environments, and release-to-release compatibility. These are all things that need to be clear for any release, even if no features were to change.

The remainder of the plan consists of plan items for all of the sub-projects under the top level Eclipse Project. Each plan item covers a feature or API that is to be added to the Eclipse Project deliverables, or some aspect of the Eclipse Project that is to be improved. Each plan item has its own entry in the Eclipse bugzilla database, with a title and a concise summary (usually a single paragraph) that explains the work item at a suitably high enough level so that everyone can readily understand what the work item is without having to understand the nitty-gritty detail.

Not all plan items represent the same amount of work; some may be quite large, others, quite small. Some plan items may involve work that is localized to a single component; others may involve coordinated changes to several components; other may pervade the entire SDK. Although some plan items are for work that is more pressing than others, the plan items appear in no particular order.

With the previous release as the starting point, this is the plan for how we will enhance and improve it. Fixing bugs, improving test coverage, documentation, examples, performance tuning, usability, etc. are considered routine ongoing maintenance activities and are not included in this plan unless they would also involve a significant change to the API or feature set, or involve a significant amount of work. The intent of the plan is to account for all interesting feature work.

The current status of each plan item is noted:

• Committed plan item - A committed plan item is one that we have decided to address for the release.
• Proposed plan item - A proposed plan item is one that we are considering addressing for the release. Although we are actively investigating it, we are not yet in a position to commit to it, or to say that we won't be able to address it. After due consideration, a proposal will either be committed or deferred.
• Deferred plan item - A reasonable proposal that will not make it in to this release for some reason is marked as deferred with a brief note as to why it was deferred. Deferred plan items may resurface as committed plan items at a later point.

The release deliverables have the same form as previous releases, namely:

• Source code release for all Eclipse Project deliverables, available as versions tagged "R4_0" in the Eclipse Project CVS repository.
• A p2 repository of binary release deliverables, maintained in a public, stable location on the http://eclipse.org Web site.
• A p2 repository of incubating components from the e4 sub-project, maintained in a public, stable location on the http://eclipse.org Web site.
• Eclipse SDK (runtime binary and SDK for Equinox[*], Platform, JDT, and PDE) (downloadable).
• Eclipse Platform (runtime binary and SDK for the Equinox[*] and Platform only) (downloadable).
• Eclipse SDK Examples (downloadable).
• SWT distribution (downloadable).

* The Equinox Project is part of the top level RT Project. A significant portion of the Equinox deliverables are consumed and redistributed as part of the Eclipse Project's SDK, Platform, and RCP deliverables.

Our target is to complete 4.0 in late July 2010, after the Helios simultaneous release. All release deliverables will be available for download as soon as the release has been tested and validated in the target operating configurations listed below.

Dates for builds and test passes after M6 will be available in the Eclipse SDK 4.0 end-game plan.

In order to remain current, each Eclipse Project release targets reasonably current operating environments.

Most of the Eclipse SDK is "pure" Java code and has no direct dependence on the underlying operating system. The chief dependence is therefore on the Java Platform itself. Portions are targeted to specific classes of operating environments, requiring their source code to only reference facilities available in particular class libraries (e.g. J2ME Foundation 1.1, J2SE 1.4, Java 5, etc).

In general, the 4.0 release of the Eclipse Project is developed on a mix of Java 1.4, Java 5 and Java 6 VMs. As such, the Eclipse SDK as a whole is targeted at all modern, desktop Java VMs. Most functionality is available for use on Java 5 everywhere, and extended development capabilities are made available on the VMs that support them.

Appendix 1 contains a table that indicates the class library level required for each bundle.

There are many different implementations of the Java Platform running atop a variety of operating systems. We focus our testing on a handful of popular combinations of operating system and Java Platform; these are our reference platforms. Eclipse undoubtedly runs fine in many operating environments beyond the reference platforms we test. However, since we do not systematically test them we cannot vouch for them. Problems encountered when running Eclipse on a non-reference platform that cannot be recreated on any reference platform will be given lower priority than problems with running Eclipse on a reference platform.

Eclipse 4.0 is tested and validated on the following reference platforms (this list is updated over the course of the release cycle):

As stated above, we expect that Eclipse works fine on other current Java VM and OS versions but we cannot flag these as reference platforms without significant community support for testing them.

Compatibility of Release 4.0 with 3.6

Eclipse 4.0 will be compatible with Eclipse 3.6 (and all earlier 3.x versions).

API Contract Compatibility: Eclipse SDK 4.0 will be upwards contract-compatible with Eclipse SDK 3.6 except in those areas noted in the Eclipse 4.0 Plug-in Migration Guide . Programs that use affected APIs and extension points will need to be ported to Eclipse SDK 4.0 APIs. Downward contract compatibility is not supported. There is no guarantee that compliance with Eclipse SDK 4.0 APIs would ensure compliance with Eclipse SDK 3.6 APIs. Refer to Evolving Java-based APIs for a discussion of the kinds of API changes that maintain contract compatibility.

Binary (plug-in) Compatibility: Eclipse SDK 4.0 will be upwards binary-compatible with Eclipse SDK 3.6 except in those areas noted in the Eclipse 4.0 Plug-in Migration Guide . Downward plug-in compatibility is not supported. Plug-ins for Eclipse SDK 4.0 will not be usable in Eclipse SDK 3.6. Refer to Evolving Java-based APIs for a discussion of the kinds of API changes that maintain binary compatibility.

Source Compatibility: Eclipse SDK 4.0 will be upwards source-compatible with Eclipse SDK 3.6 except in the areas noted in the Eclipse 4.0 Plug-in Migration Guide . This means that source files written to use Eclipse SDK 3.6 APIs might successfully compile and run against Eclipse SDK 4.0 APIs, although this is not guaranteed. Downward source compatibility is not supported. If source files use new Eclipse SDK APIs, they will not be usable with an earlier version of the Eclipse SDK.

Workspace Compatibility: Eclipse SDK 4.0 will be upwards workspace-compatible with earlier 3.x versions of the Eclipse SDK unless noted. This means that workspaces and projects created with Eclipse SDK 3.6 .. 3.0 can be successfully opened by Eclipse SDK 4.0 and upgraded to a 4.0 workspace. This includes both hidden metadata, which is localized to a particular workspace, as well as metadata files found within a workspace project (e.g., the .project file), which may propagate between workspaces via file copying or team repositories. Individual plug-ins developed for Eclipse SDK 4.0 should provide similar upwards compatibility for their hidden and visible workspace metadata created by earlier versions; 4.0 plug-in developers are responsible for ensuring that their plug-ins recognize metadata from earlier versions and process it appropriately. User interface session state may be discarded when a workspace is upgraded. Downward workspace compatibility is not supported. A workspace created (or opened) by a product based on Eclipse 4.0 will be unusable with a product based on an earlier version of Eclipse. Visible metadata files created (or overwritten) by Eclipse 4.0 will generally be unusable with earlier versions of Eclipse.

Non-compliant usage of API's: All non-API methods and classes, and certainly everything in a package with "internal" in its name, are considered implementation details which may vary between operating environment and are subject to change without notice. Client plug-ins that directly depend on anything other than what is specified in the Eclipse SDK API are inherently unsupportable and receive no guarantees about compatibility within a single release much less with earlier releases. Refer to How to Use the Eclipse API for information about how to write compliant plug-ins.

The plan items listed below were defined according to contributor requirements and the Eclipse Themes and Priorities set forth by the Eclipse Requirements Council. Each plan item covers a feature or API that is to be added to the Eclipse Project deliverables, or some aspect of the Eclipse Project that is to be improved. Each plan item has its own entry in the Eclipse bugzilla database, with a title and a concise summary (usually a single paragraph) that explains the work item at a suitably high enough level so that everyone can readily understand what the work item entails.

Although there are four projects under the top-level Eclipse Project, there is a significant amount of commonality and shared effort between them. In general, many plan items involve coordinated changes to multiple components, and thus attempting to separate the items into sections based on sub-project leads to artificial distinctions between them (e.g., Platform Text vs. JDT Text, Platform Debug vs. JDT Debug, etc.). As such, this plan covers the work of all projects under the top level Eclipse Project.

Not all plan items represent the same amount of work; some may be quite large, others, quite small. Although some plan items are for work that is more pressing than others, the plan items appear in no particular order. See the corresponding bugzilla items for up-to-date status information on ongoing work and planned delivery milestones.

The current status of each plan item is noted:

• Committed plan item - A committed plan item is one that we have decided to address for the release. In bugzilla, this is reflected by having a concrete target milestone assigned.
• Proposed plan item - A proposed plan item is one that we are considering addressing for the release. Although we are actively investigating it, we are not yet in a position to commit to it, or to say that we won't be able to address it. After due consideration, a proposal will either be committed or deferred. In bugzilla, such items are reflected by having a target milestone "4.0" or "---" assigned.
• Deferred plan item - A reasonable proposal that will not make it in to this release for some reason is marked as deferred with a brief note as to why it was deferred. Deferred plan items may resurface as committed plan items at a later point. In bugzilla, such items are reflected by having a target milestone "Future" assigned.