Development: Getting started

This is a guide for people who want to start contributing to VisiCut as a developer.

Setting up the environment

Necessary software

• Debian/Ubuntu: "sudo apt-get install netbeans git" (and "sudo apt get-install ant" only for compiling from command line)
• Windows: Get NetBeans (Java SE) here: http://netbeans.org/downloads/ and Git here: https://code.google.com/p/msysgit/downloads/list?q=full+installer+official+git
• OS X: Get NetBeans (Java SE) here: http://netbeans.org/downloads/ and Git here: http://git-scm.com/downloads/.

If you want to change the GUI, some parts are created with an old UI-Editor-Version of NetBeans, which means that you have to use NetBeans <= 7.0.1 (http://netbeans.org/downloads/7.0.1/index.html) to change those. However we are continuing to change those to newer Version, so first try to open it with a more recent version. If you just change code, which is no UI-Form, you do not need the old version.

Initial setup

• Open up a terminal (git bash on windows)
• cd to a folder, where you want to have the VisiCut sources e.g.:

cd Desktop

• clone the VisiCut repository including the LibLaserCut repository

git clone --recursive https://github.com/t-oster/VisiCut.git

• If you get an error message that --recursive is unsupported (old version of Mac OSX e.g.), use:

git clone https://github.com/t-oster/VisiCut.git
cd VisiCut
git submodule init
git submodule update

• Open up NetBeans
• Open the LibLaserCut project, then the VisiCut project:
• File->Open Project
• select the path where you cloned the VisiCut repository, expand it and select the subfolder "lib/LibLaserCut"
• Hit 'Clean and Build'
• File->Open Project
• now select the VisiCut path

Congratulations. You should now have the latest Visicut version.

If you have this setup and want to start developing, always update to the latest develop-version first:

Updating to the latest version

• In NetBeans, right-click on the LibLaserCut-project and select Git->Remote->Pull from Upstream
• If there is no Pull from upstream, use Pull... and use this URL: 'https://github.com/t-oster/LibLaserCut.git'. Select the branch "develop"
• Do the same with the VisiCut project (but use 'https://github.com/t-oster/VisiCut.git' instead).

If you want to develop and publish a fix or a feature, read submit a fix or feature