About Configuring the IDE

The IDE enables you to configure options for its many areas of functionality as well as customize its workspace.

The IDE's Configuration Tools

The primary tools you can use to configure and update the IDE include the following:

• Options Window. Enables you to set general IDE settings, edit any of the IDE's configurable settings and set keyboard shortcuts. You open the Options window by choosing Tools > Options. (On Mac OS X, choose NetBeans > Preferences.) For more information, see Using the Options Window.
• Plugins manager. Enables you to enable and disable installed plugins and add new or updated plugins to the IDE. For more information, see Updating the IDE.

You can also pass startup parameters to the IDE launcher in the IDE-HOME/etc/netbeans.conf file by using startup switches. For more information, see IDE Startup Parameters.

Using the Options Window

The Options window enables you to change any of the IDE's configurable settings. The Options window offers two views for editing IDE settings.

• Basic Options view (default). In the Basic Options view, you select a category at the top of the window to display its settings in the lower pane. Depending on the category, you can click on the tabs in the lower pane to access additional settings. When you change settings in Basic Options, the changes are not applied until you click OK.
• Advanced Options view. In the Advanced Options view, select a node in the tree view in the left pane to display the property sheet in the right pane. The property sheet contains the names and values of the settings for the item selected in the left pane. When you change settings in the property sheet, the changes are applied immediately. The Advanced Options view enables you to access some settings not available in Basic Options. In the Advanced Options view you can apply specific settings globally or at the user level.

When you open the Options window, the default view is Basic Options. To switch between views, click the Advanced Options or Basic Options buttons in the Options window.

To edit IDE settings in the Options window:

1. Open the Options window by choosing Tools > Options from the main menu. (If you are running on Mac OS X, choose NetBeans > Preferences.)
2. If you want to edit settings in Advanced Options, click Advanced Options in the Options window.
3. Depending on which view you are in, select the category in the upper pane (Basic) or node in the left pane (Advanced) to display the configurable settings.
4. Modify the settings.
5. Close the Options window.

Editing Settings in Advanced Options

Editing property sheets
When you are editing settings in Advanced Options, you can edit the property sheet in the following ways:

• If the setting is a string, you edit the value inline and press Enter to save the change.
• If a drop-down list appears when you select the option's node, click the arrow to select the value.
• If an ellipsis (...) button appears when you select the option node, click the button to open the property's editor.

In Advanced Options, changes are applied immediately.

Levels of settings
When you are in Advanced Options, you can store settings at two levels:

• Default. Initial settings provided with the IDE installation. The IDE's default settings cannot be altered, however, they can be overriden by defining them at the User level.
• User. Settings defined at the User level that override settings at the Default level.

By default the columns for User and Default are hidden. To display the User and Default columns, click << in the column heading. To hide the columns, click >>.

The following table defines the icons used in Advanced Options to indicate the levels at which settings are applied.

Icon	Description
	The settings for the corresponding options are defined at the level indicated in the column's title. Any changes made to those settings apply at that level.
	The settings for the corresponding options are inherited from a higher level.
	The settings for the corresponding options are ignored at the indicated level.

To define an option's value at the User level:

1. Select the node for the option you want to configure.
2. Click the cell in the User column for the options node you selected and choose Define Here.

The icon appears in the User column.

1. In the property sheet, configure the desired settings.

The new values for the selected options override the default values.

To revert to the default settings for an option:

1. Select the node for the option you want to configure.
2. Click the cell in the Default column for the options node you selected and Choose Revert Definition.
3. In the the dialog box, click Yes if you are sure you want to remove the selected option's User-level configuration.

The default values for the selected options are restored. The  icon appears in the Default column and the  icon appears in the User column.

• When reverting to default settings, the IDE removes any values stored at the User level for the selected option.

 

-- Wagner R. Santos