NewEmptyFile
New Empty Editor Window
From the discussion on nb-feedback: There was a request for making it possible to create a new empty editor window w/o having to specify a file name and location (or even having to go through a wizard). New file can be created on MemoryFS, like the example from sketsa shows. The IDE should try to guess the mime type from context (active project?) and also let the user to change the mime type (popup menu). Alternatively the IDE could ask the user to select the mime type, although that means the UI would not be completely simple (one keystroke to open the editor). When the user saves the file it should behave as Save As. The implementation used by sketsa would not work for NetBeans because the code they used for handling the first Save would have to be copied for every type of file. Not a problem for sketsa which only handles one or a few file types.
Additional comment: this additional comment maybe shortsighted (due the complexity of various modules), but is it possible to create generic implementation of Save As by simple serialize as text file for source related content and binary serialize for binary file eg: image, etc. All module should inherit from that generic DataObject / EditorSupport that implement that generic Save As behaviour. For more specific save as, the module implementator should inherit and provide the specific behaviour, otherwise the parent object just handle it using the generic as above. Combination of mime types or file extension could help as well for the generic save as behaviour.
New Empty File
Based on NewFileWizard specification there are 135 different file templates/wizards in NetBeans.
Some of the templates create empty files, their value is in selecting the extension for the user instead of typing it. Other templates create non empty files but the content is always the same and trivial and the content can be determined by extension. Finding a correct template is harder then just typing the extension. There is also possibly a concern that the user will not create files of types that are not supported by NetBeans. This may be an artificial problem that is caused partly by NetBeans' focus on providing templates for every type of empty file, partly by the fact the Empty File template is well hidden, partly by NetBeans supporting too few file types.
Some templates create a very similar content to other templates. For example the Java Interface template differs from the Java Class template only by one word (this is the case for most Java templates).
Here are the numbers:
| Template categories | 19 |
|---|---|
| Templates | 135 |
| Duplicates (same template in multiple categories) | 7 |
| Unique templates | 128 |
| Templates which create empty files | 8 |
| Unique non empty templates | 120 |
| Templates with trivial content which can be determined by extension | 15 |
| Trivial templates, same can be done by using another template and trivial editing | 10 |
| Folder template | 1 |
| Useful Wizards that create non trivial files based on input | 94 |
See the detailed data below.
This means the a much simpler New Empty File dialog can be used without any change and give perfect results for 8 templates. With the same simple UI and a small change in implementation (find the default template for file's extension and use it) New Empty File can be used instead of another 15 file templates with exactly the same results and for 10 more file templates with very similar results. Usage of a total of 33 templates can be replaced by a very simple dialog. For the rest the user can still go to the current New File dialog. Another benefit would be eliminating those 8 empty templates from the New File Wizard.
The UI for the New Empty File can be as simple as the New > Empty File in popup menu on folders in Favorites tab:
+----------------------+ | New File | +----------------------+ | | | File Name: --------- | | | | [[OK | OK]] [Cancel] | +----------------------+
Detailed data:
The Tag column means:
- * empty template
- X is a duplicate template (one that is also in another category, only one of those is not marked with X)
- # trivial template content, can be guessed based on extension
- $ content very similar to the template that would be guessed based on extension
| Category | Template | Tag |
|---|---|---|
| AWT GUI Forms | Applet Form | |
| AWT GUI Forms | Dialog Form | |
| AWT GUI Forms | Frame Form | |
| AWT GUI Forms | Panel Form | |
| CDC | AGUI Xlet Form | |
| CDC | Personal Profiler Xlet Form | |
| CDC | Ricoh Xlet | |
| CDC | Xlet | |
| Enterprise | Caching Service Locator | |
| Enterprise | Message-Driven Bean | |
| Enterprise | Service Locator | |
| Enterprise | Session Bean | |
| Enterprise | Standard Deployment Descriptor | |
| GlassFish | GlassFish Deployment Descriptor | |
| GlassFish | JavaMail Resource | |
| GlassFish | JDBC Connection Pool | |
| GlassFish | JDBC Resource | |
| GlassFish | JMS Resource | |
| GlassFish | Persistence Resource | |
| Java | Applet | |
| Java | Empty Java File | * |
| Java | JApplet | $ |
| Java | Java Annotation Type | $ |
| Java | Java Class | # |
| Java | Java Enum | $ |
| Java | Java Exception | $ |
| Java | Java Interface | $ |
| Java | Java Main Class | $ |
| Java | Java Package | |
| Java | Java Package Info | $ |
| Java Server Faces | JSF Managed Bean | |
| Java Server Faces | Visual Web JSF Application Bean | |
| Java Server Faces | Visual Web JSF Page | |
| Java Server Faces | Visual Web JSF Page Fragment | |
| Java Server Faces | Visual Web JSF Request Bean | |
| Java Server Faces | Visual Web JSF Session Bean | |
| JUnit | JUnit Test | |
| JUnit | JUnit Test for Existing Class | |
| JUnit | JUnit Test Suite | |
| MIDP | Empty J2ME Unit Test | * |
| MIDP | Hello Visual MIDlet (Old Version) ??? | |
| MIDP | J2ME Web Service Client | |
| MIDP | Localization Support Class | |
| MIDP | MIDlet | |
| MIDP | MIDP Canvas | |
| MIDP | Visual Design ??? | |
| MIDP | Visual Game Design | |
| MIDP | Visual MIDlet | |
| MIDP | Visual MIDlet (Old Version) ??? | |
| Module Development | Action | |
| Module Development | File Type | |
| Module Development | Java SE Library Desriptor | |
| Module Development | JavaHelp Help Set | |
| Module Development | Module Installer | |
| Module Development | Options Panel | |
| Module Development | Project Template | |
| Module Development | Update Center | |
| Module Development | Window Component | |
| Module Development | Wizard | |
| Other | Ant Build Script | # |
| Other | CSS File ??? | X |
| Other | Custom Ant Task | |
| Other | Empty File | * |
| Other | Folder | F |
| Other | HTML File | X |
| Other | JavaScript File | X |
| Other | JNLP File | # |
| Other | JSON | * |
| Other | Properties File | * |
| Other | Ruby Script | * |
| Other | SQL File | * |
| Persistence | Database Schema | |
| Persistence | Entity Class | |
| Persistence | Entity Classes from Database | |
| Persistence | Persistence Unit | |
| Persistence | SQL File | X |
| Ruby | $Rakefile | $ |
| Ruby | $Ruby Class | $ |
| Ruby | $Ruby Module | $ |
| Ruby | Empty Ruby Script | X |
| Ruby | RHTML File | # |
| Ruby | RJS | # |
| Ruby | Ruby Unit Test | |
| Ruby | Ruby Unit Test Suite | |
| SOA | BPEL Process | |
| SOA | Intelligent Event Processor | |
| SOA | SQL File | X |
| SOA | WSDL from Database | |
| SOA | XSLT Service | |
| Struts | Struts Action | |
| Struts | Struts ActionForm Bean | |
| Swing GUI Forms | Application Sample Form ??? | |
| Swing GUI Forms | Bean Form | |
| Swing GUI Forms | JApplet Form | |
| Swing GUI Forms | JDialog Form | |
| Swing GUI Forms | JFrame Form | |
| Swing GUI Forms | JInternalFrame Form | |
| Swing GUI Forms | JPanel Form | |
| Swing GUI Forms | Master/Detail Sample Form ??? | |
| Swing GUI Forms | MDI Application Sample Form ??? | |
| Swing GUI Forms | OK/Cancel Dialog Sample Form ??? | |
| UML | Diagram | |
| UML | Element | |
| UML | Package | |
| Web | #Tag File | # |
| Web | #Tag Library Descriptor | # |
| Web | Caching Service Locator ??? | |
| Web | CSS | # |
| Web | Filter | |
| Web | HTML | # |
| Web | JavaScript File | * |
| Web | JSP | # |
| Web | Service Locator ??? | |
| Web | Servlet | |
| Web | Tag Handler | |
| Web | Web Application Listener | |
| Web Services | #WSDL File ??? | X |
| Web Services | Logical Handler | |
| Web Services | Message Handler | |
| Web Services | REST Web Services from Entity Classes | |
| Web Services | Secure Token Service | |
| Web Services | Web Service | |
| Web Services | Web Service Client | |
| Web Services | Web Service from WSDL | |
| XML | #WSDL Document ??? | # |
| XML | #XML File | # |
| XML | #XML Schema | # |
| XML | #XSL Stylesheet | # |
| XML | DTD Entity | # |
| XML | External WSDL Document(s) ??? | |
| XML | External XML Schema Document(s) ??? | |
| XML | Loan Application Sample Schema ??? | |
| XML | OASIS XML Catalog | |
| XML | Purchase Order Sample Schema ??? | |
| XML | XML Parsed Entity | |
