Simteec is a small Eclipse plugin for easy code generation.
It it based upon the velocity template engine.
Code is generated by specifying a template- and a properties-file, which is needed to define
the variables for the template . A picture should bring a little light into this mechanism:
Or in detail:
Template File
Template Syntax
To get an overview about the features of the template language, i advise you
to have a look at the examples included in the plugin-folder or read the
excelent
velociy users manual.
Property File
In the properties file you can specify a set of system properties that tell
the engine what files to generate and what templates to use. Each properties
file can have one output target and one template. The properties file can
also specify other properties files that have their output targets and
templates. This way one can build a generation hierarchy that can be
executed by selecting its root properties file.
Each properties file can also define a set of user properties that are used
in the templates. The properties of a parent properties file are passed on
to its children (branches). The properties of parent files have precedence
over the properties of their children.
Properties Syntax
The syntax is very simple and limited, but powerful.
There are three types of variable:
It is also possible to specify comment by using '#'. The syntax is really
pretty simple and can be easily understood by having a look at
the examples included in the downloadable
zip-file
or at the sample project simteecExamples.zip . The
examples have been extended, to show some of the new functionalities.
Comment handling has been improved and it is now possible to
have empty lines without any problems. It is also possible to put comments
in all places (e.g. at the end of each line in a map declaration)
A very nice feature is the new possibility to use user defined
template variables inside simteec variables. You can use them by surrounding
them with ${ and }. Have a look at the file2.prop
at the bottom of this page.
Path Properties
The path properties can have a very flexible syntax. The paths can be
absolute, relative to the Eclipse Workspace, relative to the project or
relative to their properties file. Here are some examples:
The "simteec_template" property specifies the Velocity template (.vm file).
This is a path property (see Path Properties).
simteec_output
simteec_output = "${output}/outputfile.txt";
The "simteec_output" property specifies the output file path
(see Path Properties).
simteec_overwrite
simteec_overwrite = "true";
The "simteec_overwrite" property defines what to do if the file specified
by "simteec_output" already exists. If the property is not specified the
engine will ask the user whether to overwrite the file or not. If the
property is defined and its value is "true" it will overwrite the file
without asking the user. In any other case it will skip the file without
writing. The property is passed on to the branches, so be careful when you
specify simteec_overwrite="true"
in the base of the generation hierarchy –
you may end up deleting modifications that you made to the generated files.
One good policy that is used in Apache Torque for class generation
is to generate two classes – one called Base${Class}.java and the other
${Class}.java. The Base- class will contain all the generated logic, the
second class will inherit the base and you will make modifications only to
the second. You should set simteec_overwrite="true" for the Base- class
generator and simteec_overwrite="false" for the second class.
The "simteec_branches" property defines what additional property files the
current generator must run. The property can be either a one value property,
like: simteec_branches="next.prop";
or it can specify a list of values, like: simteec_branches=@("next_one.prop", "next_two.prop",
"WORKSPACE:/generators/global.prop");
Each value must be a path to a Simteec generator properties file.
This is a new feature, which allows you to put classes from the
current project into the velocity context. The property is a map and
should be defined in the following way:
simteec_utils=%("strUtil"=>"org.apache.lang.StringUtils",
"myUtil"=>"com.company.util.MyUtil");
I would like to
emphesis this new feature, because it opens up quite a lot of new possibilities!
More information will follow! For now, you should know, that all classes,
which you want to use in the velocity context, must have an empty constructor!!
# ---------------------
# simteec configuration
# ---------------------
# template which will be used for all branches
simteec_template="PROJECT:/templates/simteecWeb.vm";
# overwrite all generated output file if they exist
simteec_overwrite="true";
# other property files , for which the generater will be started
simteec_branches=@(
"ant.prop");
# ------------------
# template variables
# ------------------
# just a simple string variable which will be available in all property file branches
name = "this is a name";
# another simple variable
output_path = "PROJECT:/simteecWebsite/output";
file2.prop :
# ---------------------
# simteec configuration
# ---------------------
# the name and path of the output file which should be generated
simteec_output="${output_path}/ant.html";
# ------------------
# template variables
# ------------------
# simple string variable
title = "Ant";
# another simple string variable
content = "
here is some
text
";
# a array variable
array = @(
"value1",
"value2" );
# a map variable
map = %(
"key" => "value",
"key2" => "value2" );
Velocity Context
By default the velocity context will contain all the properties from
the specified properties file. But there are also some special
objects inside the context These are:
ctx
contains the current velocity context (usefull for the velocity RenderTool).
velocityTools
contains all the generic tools provided by the
velocity tools subgroup. The tools can be accessed in
the templates using:
$velocityTools.DateTool,
$velocityTools.MathTool,
$velocityTools.IteratorTool or
$velocityTools.RenderTool.
