IPerspectiveDescriptor


1   /*******************************************************************************
2    * Copyright (c) 2000, 2005 IBM Corporation and others.
3    * All rights reserved. This program and the accompanying materials
4    * are made available under the terms of the Eclipse Public License v1.0
5    * which accompanies this distribution, and is available at
6    * http://www.eclipse.org/legal/epl-v10.html
7    *
8    * Contributors:
9    *     IBM Corporation - initial API and implementation
10   *******************************************************************************/
11  package org.eclipse.ui;
12  
13  import org.eclipse.jface.resource.ImageDescriptor;
14  
15  /**
16   * A perspective descriptor describes a perspective in an
17   * <code>IPerspectiveRegistry</code>.  
18   * <p>
19   * A perspective is a template for view visibility, layout, and action visibility
20   * within a workbench page. There are two types of perspective: a predefined 
21   * perspective and a custom perspective.  
22   * <ul>
23   *   <li>A predefined perspective is defined by an extension to the workbench's 
24   *     perspective extension point (<code>"org.eclipse.ui.perspectives"</code>).
25   *     The extension defines a id, label, and <code>IPerspectiveFactory</code>.
26   *     A perspective factory is used to define the initial layout for a page.
27   *     </li>
28   *   <li>A custom perspective is defined by the user.  In this case a predefined
29   *     perspective is modified to suit a particular task and saved as a new
30   *     perspective.  The attributes for the perspective are stored in a separate file 
31   *     in the workbench's metadata directory.
32   *     </li>
33   * </ul>
34   * </p>
35   * <p>
36   * Within a page the user can open any of the perspectives known
37   * to the workbench's perspective registry, typically by selecting one from the
38   * workbench's <code>Open Perspective</code> menu. When selected, the views
39   * and actions within the active page rearrange to reflect the perspective.
40   * </p>
41   * <p>
42   * This interface is not intended to be implemented by clients.
43   * </p>
44   * @see IPerspectiveRegistry
45   */
46  public interface IPerspectiveDescriptor {
47      /**
48       * Returns the description of this perspective.
49       * This is the value of its <code>"description"</code> attribute.
50       *
51       * @return the description
52       * @since 3.0
53       */
54      public String   getDescription();
55  
56      /**
57       * Returns this perspective's id. For perspectives declared via an extension,
58       * this is the value of its <code>"id"</code> attribute.
59       *
60       * @return the perspective id
61       */
62      public String   getId();
63  
64      /**
65       * Returns the descriptor of the image to show for this perspective.
66       * If the extension for this perspective specifies an image, the descriptor
67       * for it is returned.  Otherwise a default image is returned.
68       *
69       * @return the descriptor of the image to show for this perspective
70       */
71      public ImageDescriptor getImageDescriptor();
72  
73      /**
74       * Returns this perspective's label. For perspectives declared via an extension,
75       * this is the value of its <code>"label"</code> attribute.
76       *
77       * @return the label
78       */
79      public String   getLabel();
80  }
81
A to Z: JavaDoc & Examples Daily Java News & Articles Open Source Projects Open Source Codes Free Computer Books Remove Frame
Popular Tags