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  1. Stackups
  2. DevOps
  3. Build Automation
  4. Java Build Tools
  5. Apache Ant vs Eclipse

Apache Ant vs Eclipse

OverviewDecisionsComparisonAlternatives

Overview

Apache Ant
Apache Ant
Stacks250
Followers151
Votes7
GitHub Stars449
Forks449
Eclipse
Eclipse
Stacks2.7K
Followers2.3K
Votes392

Apache Ant vs Eclipse: What are the differences?

# Introduction
Apache Ant and Eclipse are widely-used tools in software development, but they have key differences in their functionalities and purposes. Understanding these differences can help developers choose the right tool for their specific needs.

1. **Build Automation vs. Integrated Development Environment (IDE)**: Apache Ant is primarily a build tool used for automating software build processes, while Eclipse is an integrated development environment (IDE) that provides a comprehensive set of tools for software development, including code editing, debugging, and project management.
   
2. **Language vs. Framework Dependency**: Ant is not tied to any specific programming language and can be used to build projects written in various languages. In contrast, Eclipse is tightly integrated with Java and is commonly used for developing Java applications, although it also supports other programming languages through plugins.
   
3. **XML vs. Graphical User Interface (GUI)**: Ant build scripts are written in XML, which offers a high level of control and customization over the build process but can be complex to manage. Eclipse, on the other hand, provides a user-friendly graphical interface that simplifies development tasks and offers visual tools for coding and debugging.
   
4. **Community and Plugin Ecosystem**: Apache Ant has a strong community support and a wide range of plugins available for extending its functionality. Eclipse, being an IDE, also has a large community and vast plugin ecosystem, with a variety of plugins for different languages, frameworks, and tools.
   
5. **Command-Line vs. Interactive Development**: Ant is typically run from the command line interface, making it suitable for automated builds in continuous integration systems. Eclipse, on the contrary, provides an interactive development environment with features like code completion, refactoring, and real-time error checking.
   
6. **Complexity and Learning Curve**: Apache Ant is more suitable for experienced developers who prefer manual configuration and customization of build processes. Eclipse, with its beginner-friendly interface and integrated tools, is well-suited for developers of all levels, including beginners who are new to software development.

In Summary, Apache Ant and Eclipse differ in terms of their primary functions, language dependencies, scripting languages, user interfaces, community support, development environments, and learning curves, catering to different needs in software development.

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Advice on Apache Ant, Eclipse

christy
christy

Program Manager

Jul 1, 2020

Needs adviceonPythonPythonEclipseEclipseIntelliJ IDEAIntelliJ IDEA

UPDATE: Thanks for the great response. I am going to start with VSCode based on the open source and free version that will allow me to grow into other languages, but not cost me a license ..yet.

I have been working with software development for 12 years, but I am just beginning my journey to learn to code. I am starting with Python following the suggestion of some of my coworkers. They are split between Eclipse and IntelliJ IDEA for IDEs that they use and PyCharm is new to me. Which IDE would you suggest for a beginner that will allow expansion to Java, JavaScript, and eventually AngularJS and possibly mobile applications?

2.03M views2.03M
Comments
Manabu
Manabu

CEO, Co-Founder at WinguMD

Jun 13, 2020

Decided

I originally chose IntelliJ over Eclipse, as it was close enough to the look and feel of Visual Studio and we do go back and forth between the two. We really begin to love IntelliJ and their suite of IDEs so we are now using AppCode for the IOS development because the workflow is identical with the IntelliJ. IntelliJ is super complex and intimidating at first but it does afford a lot of nice utilities to get us produce clean code.

551k views551k
Comments
Simon
Simon

Software Engineer at Picnic Technologies

Aug 21, 2020

Review

Notepad++ is insanely simplistic. It doesn't help much with the coding, as it doesn't have stuff like auto-completion. Atom is a great editor for pretty much any language. It has a plugin ide-java to support Java programming. When starting with Java, I would recommend it. But, when becoming even a bit better in the language, I would suggest a more mature IDE like IntelliJ or Eclipse. The refactoring and code manipulation tools make it a lot quicker to program. Only when getting started it might be a bit too much to both learn a language AND learn an IDE. So Atom might be better to get started.

342 views342
Comments

Detailed Comparison

Apache Ant
Apache Ant
Eclipse
Eclipse

Ant is a Java-based build tool. In theory, it is kind of like Make, without Make's wrinkles and with the full portability of pure Java code.

Standard Eclipse package suited for Java and plug-in development plus adding new plugins; already includes Git, Marketplace Client, source code and developer documentation. Click here to file a bug against Eclipse Platform.

The most complete Java build and deployment tool available.;Platform neutral and can handle platform specific properties such as file separators;Can be used to perform platform specific tasks such as modifying the modified time of a file using 'touch' command;Scripts are written using plain XML. If you are already familiar with XML, you can learn pretty quickly;Automate complicated repetitive tasks;Interface to develop custom tasks;Can be easily invoked from the command line and it can integrate with free and commercial IDEs
-
Statistics
GitHub Stars
449
GitHub Stars
-
GitHub Forks
449
GitHub Forks
-
Stacks
250
Stacks
2.7K
Followers
151
Followers
2.3K
Votes
7
Votes
392
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • 4
    Flexible
  • 1
    Easy to learn
  • 1
    Simple
  • 1
    Easy to write own java-build-hooks
Cons
  • 1
    Old and not widely used anymore
  • 1
    Slow
Pros
  • 131
    Does it all
  • 76
    Integrates with most of tools
  • 64
    Easy to use
  • 63
    Java IDE
  • 32
    Best Java IDE
Cons
  • 14
    2000 Design
  • 9
    Bad performance
  • 4
    Hard to use
Integrations
No integrations available
Java
Java

What are some alternatives to Apache Ant, Eclipse?

PhpStorm

PhpStorm

PhpStorm is a PHP IDE which keeps up with latest PHP & web languages trends, integrates a variety of modern tools, and brings even more extensibility with support for major PHP frameworks.

IntelliJ IDEA

IntelliJ IDEA

Out of the box, IntelliJ IDEA provides a comprehensive feature set including tools and integrations with the most important modern technologies and frameworks for enterprise and web development with Java, Scala, Groovy and other languages.

Visual Studio

Visual Studio

Visual Studio is a suite of component-based software development tools and other technologies for building powerful, high-performance applications.

WebStorm

WebStorm

WebStorm is a lightweight and intelligent IDE for front-end development and server-side JavaScript.

NetBeans IDE

NetBeans IDE

NetBeans IDE is FREE, open source, and has a worldwide community of users and developers.

PyCharm

PyCharm

PyCharm’s smart code editor provides first-class support for Python, JavaScript, CoffeeScript, TypeScript, CSS, popular template languages and more. Take advantage of language-aware code completion, error detection, and on-the-fly code fixes!

Apache Maven

Apache Maven

Maven allows a project to build using its project object model (POM) and a set of plugins that are shared by all projects using Maven, providing a uniform build system. Once you familiarize yourself with how one Maven project builds you automatically know how all Maven projects build saving you immense amounts of time when trying to navigate many projects.

Android Studio

Android Studio

Android Studio is a new Android development environment based on IntelliJ IDEA. It provides new features and improvements over Eclipse ADT and will be the official Android IDE once it's ready.

RubyMine

RubyMine

JetBrains RubyMine IDE provides a comprehensive Ruby code editor aware of dynamic language specifics and delivers smart coding assistance, intelligent code refactoring and code analysis capabilities.

Gradle

Gradle

Gradle is a build tool with a focus on build automation and support for multi-language development. If you are building, testing, publishing, and deploying software on any platform, Gradle offers a flexible model that can support the entire development lifecycle from compiling and packaging code to publishing web sites.

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