 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some question that are frequently asked by users. If you have your own question or your own hint, please feel free to edit and add your own comments.
Also see the java.net site FAQ.
Site Tips
Project Tips - General
Project Tips - Project Owners
Wiki Tips
Weblog Tips
Java Development Tips
Knowledge Sharing project
Q: How do I contact individual members on java.net?
A: Contacting other members is really easy! Just append @dev.java.net to any user name. So to contact helen, I would send a message to helen@dev.java.net. You email is forwarded to the email address the user entered when they registered for java.net.
back
Q: I see an error on a project or I have a question - how can I contact the owners of a project?
A: If the project home page lists the owners, you can contact them directly (see previous question, How do I contact individual members on java.net?). However, if y
ou want to contact all of the owners at once, or if the project page does not list the owners (some customized pages do not show the owner usernames), you can always reach the owners of a project by sending email to owner@project name. So for example, if the project url is https://incubator.dev.java.net, then you could reach the owners via owner aatt incubator.dev.java.net. Note that the name, "owner" is singular, but the alias will send your mail to all of the owners, whether there is one or more users with the owner role for that project.
back
Q: Can I post a Java development opening or my resume on java.net?
A: Yes! You can. Follow the instructions on this wiki to post an opening or your resume. There is a separate wiki page for each.
back
Q. What role should I request in the java-net project?
A. Because the https://java-net.dev.java.net/ project is the "Java Community's watercooler," it is not necessary to
request any role in this special project. All java.net members are automatically granted Observer rights in the java-net
project. However, because this is automatic, the java-net project will not show up on your start page,
https://www.dev.java.net/servlets/StartPage. Of course, you don't really need it to show up on your start page because
it is in the left nav bar of every project page, the first item on the list under Get Involved at the top.
However, if you just want java-net to appear on your start page, then request the Observer role and sooner or
later it will be granted and java-net will appear on your start page.
Note that although you may be a developer, it does not make sense to request the Developer role for the
java-net project. There is no code there to develop. Similarly, unless you want to write the Community Manager
a letter volunteering to help maintain the web pages in the java-net project, it makes little sense to request
Content Developer or Project Owner roles.
For information about roles you might want to request in other projects, see the Project roles help.
It is unlikely that it makes sense to request any role for the java-net project, unless you want to see it on your
start page as described above.
If you are eager to request a role in some project, please go directly to the Help Wanted ads and
see if you can find a match with your skills! Another approach is to browse through the project directory
and look for a project that captures your interest. Request Observer role, then send the project owner
email volunteering to help.
back
Q. My HTML tags don't work on forums. What am I doing wrong?
A. Not all HTML tags are valid in the forums or in the talkback messages. You should see a list of tags that you can use when you create your post. Please note that your tags should be in lowercase letters. If you code your tags in uppercase they won't render correctly.
back
Q. How do I change my username and password?
A. It is not possible to change your username. If you really need to do that, you need to create a new account. Then you will need to rejoin any projects that you have joined under the current username.
To change your password click on My Pages and then click on My Profile in the left navigation.
back
Q. How do I read my @dev.java.net email messages?
A. Your java.net mail goes to the account listed in your account profile. To check how yours is set up, or to change the setting, click on My pages, Edit profile.
back
Q. The text on java.net articles is too small for me to see easily. Why don't you use proportional text so I can ask my favorite browser to enlarge all text?
A. The CSS on our pages uses pixels to set the font-size. Currently this causes Internet Explorer's text enlarging to not work. Are you using Internet Explorer? If so, this is easy to get around. All you need to do is:
Go to Tools->Internet Options
Choose Accessibility (near the bottom).
Then check the "Ignore font sizes specified on Web pages" box.
There are a number of reasons we chose to use pixels to set the font size. If you would like more information please e-mail the community manager.
back
Q. How can I have a top level domain, which redirects to Java.net infrastructure?
A. This will depend on the administrative tools of your domain name provider. Most of them would allow you to register a domain name and then setup a framed or unframed redirect to your XYZ.dev.java.net project home.
The framed redirect will keep in the browser URL the name of your own domain while visitors are navigating the project. The advantage of this is that users will maintain association with your domain name and search engines are more likely to index it. The disadvantage is that bookmarking is less intuitive; instead of bookmarking the browser URL, users will have to specifically right-click and bookmark the link they are interested in.
The unframed redirect is typically HTTP 302 response code, which forces the browser to load XYZ.dev.java.net instead of the original www.XYZ.org site. The advantage of this aproach is that the users will see in the browser URL the address of the exact page that they are looking at. This makes bookmarking easier. The disadvantage is that search engines are less likely to index your domain site.
back
Q. I How do I get a java.net blog?
A. Send an e-mail to the site editor to be considered as a potential blogger. There's more information in the Publicize your Project link in the left nav. Not everyone is accepted - the editors try to balance interests and viewpoints among the various bloggers.
back
Q. Why am I not getting mailing list subscription confirmation messages in my mail box?
A. If you are not receiving mailing list subscription confirmation messages, you should check for typos in your email address provided for the account. You can do this by going to My Profile page from the Start Page. You should also check for any SPAM filters that might be active in your mail box. Add 'dev.java.net' as a 'Safe User' in your email configuration and try subscribing again.
back
Q. Is there a nightly build feature on java.net?
A. At this point, java.net does not offer nightly build services. Sorry!
back
Q. Does java.net allow CVS ext access?
A. No, I'm sorry. Only pserver is supported. It is not possible to use "ext" instead of "pserver" in the CVS Root to checkout files. SSH can be used to set up a tunnel for secure access using generic login. See further detail at https://java-net.dev.java.net/servlets/ProjectForumMessageView?forumID=95&messageID=1290
back
Q. Is it possible to share source code (for example utilities) in CVS between projects? Or do I have to create a new project for each module/package?
A. If the utilities are related, it may make sense to have them in the same CVS repository. You can separate using well-defined directory structures for each utility. You can not directly share things from one repository to another. You would need to check out the needed utilities from the original project and check them into the new project.
back
Q. How do I access cvs.dev.java.net through a SOCKS proxy server?
A. You can get general information on SOCKS for CVS at https://www.cvshome.org/docs/infonetsecurity.html.
Particularly on Windows, there are SOCKS implementations like one from Hummingbird (https://www.hummingbird.com/products/nc/socks/install.html) and Sockscap (https://www.socks.permeo.com/Download/SocksCapDownload/index.asp).
back
Q. Why is my local CVS repository read-only?
A. Check your CVS client settings. There is usually a setting that sets the files to read-only during the checkout process.
If you are using a command line client, the command is:
cvs watch off -R
back
Q. How do I post a bug in Issue tracker?
A. The ability to perform tasks in the java.net project space is defined by roles and permissions. If you are logged in and can't post to Issue tracker, consider joining the project in a role that allows for posting. Request membership by clicking on the Request membership/role link on the project home page. If you have questions about specific project roles, please contact the project owner directly.
back
Q. How do I "unjoin" a project?
A: Go to the project that you want to leave. Click on the Membership button. Find your user name. Click on the checkbox next to your project role. Click on the Revoke checked roles button at the bottom of the page.
back
Q. How can I start a new Community on java.net?
A. Contact the Community Manager to discuss your idea and receive a copy of the one-page outline for requesting new communities. The most successful Communities, with a big C, on java.net are the ones that have at least a few active projects, each with their own community, with a small c, of developers and users who are working together around a particular technology or application space. It is better to bring a few such successful projects together in a Community than it is to build the Community infrastructure first with great plans for a number of projects that may not materialize.
back
Q. How can I start a sub-project of an existing project on java.net?
A. Follow these steps:
1. Go here - Request a Project - https://www.java.net/request_project.csp
2. Follow the first two steps under "Starting a New Project"
3. At step #3, begin to fill out the first form page -
- Under "Choose a community you'd like to join": choose the top-level community of where you want your sub-project to be. (If unknown, skip)
- Put yourself as the Project Manager
- Under "Other Notes or Comments", ask to make your project a sub-project of the "parent" project you want yours to be under
4. Fill out page 2 (Warning: do not use the back button while filling this page)
- here you can choose the parent project from a list
- be sure the 'Use project index.html' box is checked
- submit "Create Project" and your new project page will display
5. A community leader will see this request and if necessary, "re-parent" your new project appropriately.
They will approve it and send a confirmation email to both the parent project leader and you.
back
Q. I am starting a new JUG, or my JUG needs a new website. Can we be part of java.net?
A. Get Hosted on java.net - follow this link
back
Q. I am a JUG leader - how can I get my JUG listed on java.net?
A. Get Listed on java.net - follow this link
back
Q. How do I move out of incubator?
A. When your project was approved in the General Incubator or a community incubator you should have received an email that described what you needed to do to graduate. Any project that has completed the requirements to graduate can send a message to their community leader to be considered for promotion. They will review your request and let you know their decision. The process for moving out of the incubator is documented, briefly, on the home page for that incubator or https://incubator.dev.java.net.
back
Q. What tools are available for my project?
A. The project tools available are:
- CVS
- Document File Sharing
- Discussion Forums
- Issue Tracking
- Mailing Lists
- News Postings
- Event Postings (available from https://www.java.net/events)
- Weblog (requires separate request to java.net editor)
- Wiki (if your community doesn't have a wiki email your community leader to request that one be created)
back
Q. What do I use as a package name? Is it okay to use a name with "java" in it?
A. Reversing the domain name is a common practice for package names. However, using net.java.xxx for a package name convention is a bad idea for numerous reasons:
- "Java" is a legal trademark and the use of trademarks needs to follow the terms of use provided by the owner of the trademark. The Java trademark is owned by Sun and their terms of use are here. https://www.sun.com/policies/trademarks/ So, this does not just apply to package names, but to project names, community names, etc.
- The JCP controls the use of the java.* and javax.* namespace. Therefore only official Java packages that have gone through the JSR and Java Community processes can use those package names.
- There is an existing official java.net.* package namespace. The use of net.java.* would be particularly confusing because it is very close to an official Java package name. This could be considered deceptive. The use of names that are confusingly similar to trademarks may constitute an infringement of the trademark. This is the case with the Java trademark. https://www.sun.com/policies/trademarks/#20b java.net can't and won't knowingly condone or allow any activity that is illegal or infringes on any license, brand, copyright, or trademark. It may be impossible to police this, but we are obligated to act on any issues we become aware of. If we are made aware of package names or project names that infringe on any one brand or trademark, we will ask the project owner to change the name. The best advice is to steer clear of all brands and trademarks of all companies. In the case of java.net, we may want to adopt a naming convention of java-net.*
Currently, there is no standard configuration recommended by Sun.
back
Q. How do I see how many times my project has been downloaded?
A. The logger project will allow you to calculate the number of downloads for your project.
back
Q. How do I use project index.html?
A. CVS - if your project is using CVS, the index.html file is found in the www/ folder. Use a CVS client to update and commit changes.
- If only minimal homepage content is required, choose the 'project description' option available when editing the project and add whatever information (including html code) in the text window there.
A. Subversion - if your project is using Subversion, the index.html file is found in the www/ folder. Use a Subversion client to update and commit changes.
- Projects using Subversion have the option of using the integrated wysiwyg Project Page Editor for creating and editing the project's web content (go here for instructions on using the PPE). Any changes made via the wysiwyg editor are saved as html in the index.html file. Any updates to the index.html file committed via Subversion after wysiwyg saves are made will simply become the next revision - and vice versa.
It is generally recommend that you keep the styles simple within your project space. There are general directions at https://java-net.dev.java.net/pagedesign.html.
You can use style sheets. Many people put their style sheets in a separate directory to organize their files.
NOTE -
Projects using Subversion that were created in the prior version of CCE (3.5.1) do not have the current functionality for the index.html as the latest version CCE 4.5.2. Changes to the index.html file committed
via the wysiwyg in projects of the earlier version will DISABLE any subsequent commits/updates to the index.html made via Subversion clients, i.e. - the default homepage content is no longer the index.html file, but
now another file 'HtmlSnippet1.html'.
There is a work-around means to revert the default homepage content being drawn from the index.html file - and thus again allowing commits via Subversion to be effective.
In order to revert to using the index.html file (which then enables check-ins of changes to index.html via Subversion), the "filename" attribute in the .xml file in the alm-process directory under the www folder in the project's Subversion repository must be edited, changing the "filename" attribute from 'HtmlSnippet1.html' to index.html
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>
- <page visibility="1">
- <component_list>
- <component visibility="1" type="ProjectMetadata" order="1">
<title localize="false" />
</component>
- <component visibility="1" type="Html" order="2">
<title localize="false" />
<filename>HtmlSnippet1.html</filename>
</component>
- <component visibility="1" type="Subproject" order="3">
<title localize="true">Subprojects</title>
</component>
</component_list>
</page>
back
Q. How do I move my project?
A. If you think your project belongs in a different community you should contact your community manager to review the classification of your project. It is a simple process to move your project and it will not affect your project URL.
back
Q. How do I add a version to the issue tracker?
A. A project owner should be able to edit the project configuration to add things such as components and versions. This is found under the section called "Issue attributes" in Configuration.
For more information on issue tracker configuration, please see the full response at https://java-net.dev.java.net/servlets/ProjectForumMessageView?forumID=95&messageID=2006
back
Q. Can I make a forum in my project where any java.net member can post, in the same way the java-net forum works?
A. No, a user must be a member of a project to post in the project forum. Since all registered users are automatically made Observers in the java-net project, all registered users can post there. Anyone who would like to post in your forum can request an Observer role in your project. See How do I join a project? for more information about joining projects.
Any member of java.net can post to the community forums, because these forums are not related to any specific project.
back
Q. How do I change the order in the issue tracker's version list?
A. If you add a new version (let's say 2.0.0) it appear after older versions (e. g. 1.0.0):
If you file a new issue, actually "Found in version: 1.0.0" is selected, but I would like to see that "Found in version: 2.0.0" is selected. Therefore I would like to change the order to a more suitable way:
Unfortunately deleting and reentering isn't going to help. It is sorted numerically. Currently, there isn't an option to change that. Users can type in the first digit for quicker access to parts of the list. So if the list is:
- 1.0
- 1.1
- 1.2
- 1.3
- 2.0
- 2.1
- 2.2
- 2.3
- 3.0
- 3.1
- 3.2
- 3.3
Typing 3 will get you to 3.0 and you can arrow down to get to 3.3 more quickly.
back
Q. I've received spam in my project's mailing list. What can I do to stop this?
A. The java.net project mailing lists utilize Brightmail's spam filter. You can report any spam you receive to Brightmail so that it gets caught the next time it is sent to one of our mailing lists. See instructions on how to do this at sunsource.net.
back
Q. Can I get rid of the java.net navigation and branding on my project home page and use Maven or something else to generate a nicer home page?
A. Yes, you can, but there are two policy guidelines that you must follow:
1. If your page does not have the java.net header on it, then you must put the java.net Member button somewhere near the top of your home page, where it is not normally necessary to scroll to see it.
2. You must also link on your home page to another page in your project that does have the standard java.net project navigation and information. As an example, the project owner's page would suffice.
For specific instructions for creating a project home page, see the HTML for Project Pages FAQ.
back
Q. I'd like to make my page conform to the rest of the site - where are the style sheets for java.net pages?
A. You don't need any .css files. Web pages on *.dev.java.net sites are checked in to Version Control (usually CVS), under www. This automatically applies our standard CSS and java.net navigation to the page you've checked in.
For example, if you check in the file www/foo.html and in that file it says This is the file foo with html tags to format it, then the URL yourproject.dev.java.net/foo.html will display the page with all of the standard java.net navigation around it, and your content, This is the file foo, will show in the main section of the page.
That said, you should keep your page design simple. Headings 1-4, as well as other design information can be found at HTML for Project Pages.
back
Q. Can I host my Java Web Start (JWS) application in java.net?
A. Yes, you can. To host your Java Web Start application you simply need to use the web space of your project, which is managed through the Version Control software (CVS or SVN) under the www folder. You simply need to add your .jnlp file, your classes and required libraries in a folder under www and then you can access it as you would access any other web content in your project. For example, you could add www/jws/myapp.jnlp to your repository and then access it with yourproject.dev.java.net/jws/myapp.jnlp.
As a live example, the project https://mw4serverseeker.dev.java.net/ hosts two JWS applications and you can check at their repository (https://mw4serverseeker.dev.java.net/source/browse/mw4serverseeker/www/) how they are configured.
back
Q. How do I obtain a CVS dump of my project repository?
A. Send your request to cvs_dump_request@admin.dev.java.net , including the name of your project from which you would like the CVS dump file and
any other details. The file that is generated will be a tarball (.tar file). If it is small enough, it can be emailed to you. If it is
too large for email and less than or equal to 2GB, it will be posted in the Documents & files area of the project from which it
originated. (Arrangements can be made for files larger then 2GB). You will receive an email reply confirming receipt of
your request.
back
Q. How do I convert my project from CVS to Subversion?
A. Converting a project from CVS to Subversion is a paid service provided by CollabNet. The details regarding this conversion process are available here. Alternatively, you can migrate your CVS repository by creating a new project with a different name and converting your CVS repository yourself. Information and tools are available here. To perform a full conversion you will need the CVS dump of your repository to convert it to SVN. Follow the instructions above (A - How do I obtain a CVS dump of my project repository) to request that CVS dump file.
back
Q. Why is it recommended that I choose Subversion over CVS when requesting a new project on java.net?
A.
- Versioned directories & renames
- Subversion not only versions the files, but also the directories. It is also possible to copy, move and rename files/folders without losing the history.
- Versioned meta data
- Not only does Subversion versions the file contents but also it allows you to add versioned meta-data to it for eg: copyright and license information.
- Atomic commits & change sets
- During a bulk commit, either the entire commits goes through or the entire process is rolled back in case of external problems like network issues etc. This ensures that unnecessary locks on the working copy are not created.
- Global revisions
- Every commit on Subversion creates a new snapshot of the repository. If you view an old version of the repository, Subversion displays the entire repository as it was in that revision. This way nothing is ever deleted so mistakes can be easily detected and reverted
- Branching and tagging are cheap
- There is no special concept of branching or tagging in Subversion. There is only the data set and copies there-of. Copies are implemented to be extremely cheap (space & time wise)
- Online WYSIWYG editor
- If your project uses Subversion for Version Control you can use the WYSIWYG editor to customize your project pages including project home page.
back
Q. How can I have large downloads for my project hosted on the java.net download server (download.java.net)?
A. Review the details here and then contact your Community Leader with your request for an account on the upload server. Use the subject line "Request for Download Account" in your email.
back
Q. In order to help new Project Owners get oriented on the dev.java.net site, are there Webex recordings of tutorials and Q&A sessions?
A. This webex recording shows users how to use all CEE tools in the left nav including Editing Project Pages, Announcements, Discussion Forums, Mailing Lists, Documents&Files and Issue Tracker. Check out the streaming version or download the entire recording.
back
Q. What is a wiki?
A. A good place to learn about wikis is wikipedia. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki for more information.
back
Q. How do I edit a wiki page?
A. You must be logged into a valid java.net account to edit a wiki page. If your account is brand-new, make sure that you have clicked on the My Pages tab and accepted the java.net Terms of Use document.
back
Q. Where can I get help on editing my wiki page on java.net?
A. The wiki software used on java.net is Twiki. When you edit a page, there are links near the bottom of the Edit page to GoodStyle? and TextFormattingRules?. They really provide everything you need to know in order to edit your wiki page. Try it out in the Sandbox to get yourself oriented with editing a wiki!
back
Q. I want to make a wiki page for my project. Where should I put it?
A. Go to https://wiki.java.net and see if your community has a wiki. If so, contact your community leader to ask where to put your project wiki, or just look in your community wiki for examples and add your project wiki there. If your community does not have a wiki, or if your project is in the general projects of java.net, not in a specific community, then add your new wiki under the General Projects wiki: https://wiki.java.net/bin/view/Projects/WebHome.
back
Q. Can I automatically hear about changes that have been made to a wiki site?
A. Sure, this is really easy. Just sign up using WebNotify in the Wiki Tools section.
- Log into java.net
- Scroll to the bottom of the page
- Under Site Tools, click on WebNotify.
- Edit page to put your name on the notification list.
See https://wiki.java.net/bin/view/People/WebNotify as an example.
back
Q. I'm interested in seeing past activity regarding a wiki site. Where can I find this type of information?
A.
- Click on WebChanges for a list of changes to this wiki, most recent pages are listed first
- Click on WebStatistics to see hits, saves, most popular pages and top contributors by month.
back
Q. Can I attach files to my wiki pages in wiki.java.net?
A. No, this feature is disabled on java.net because project owners are encouraged to upload files to the Doucuments and Files sections of the project space to cut down on spam. The files in the Doucuments and Files sections can be linked to from the wiki.
back
Q. What is a weblog?
A. java.net weblogs are a vehicle for unique voices within the Java community to provide commentary, reporting, guidance, and more. Bloggers are selected by the editors, who try to balance interests and viewpoints across the broad spectrum of Java development. View java.net weblogs here.
Q. How do request my own java.net weblog?
A. Email the java.net editor, Chris Adamson, to be considered as a potential blogger.
Q. How do disable comments on individual blog entries in my java.net blog?
A. Go to the bottom of your weblog entry page and change Comments from "Open" to "Closed".
Q. How do disable all comments in my java.net blog?
A. Send an email with your request to feedback@dev.java.net. To prevent any confusion, send it from the email address associated with your java.net username and weblog .
back
Q. I am new to Java, where can I find basic steps to get started?
A. Please check out the following page for those new to Java
New To Java Center
back
Q. How do I compile a program?
A. Please check out the following tutorials for help:
https://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/getStarted/problems/
https://java.sun.com/developer/onlineTraining/new2java/gettingstartedjava.html
back
Q. How do I get Java to open programs with their default application?
A. Please refer to https://jdic.dev.java.net. Specifically:
https://jdic.dev.java.net/nonav/documentation/javadoc/jdic/org/jdesktop/jdic/desktop/Desktop.html#open(java.io.File)
back
Q. Where can I get questions answered about Java development?
A. Try the forum in the project https://new2java.dev.java.net. The forum
is linked on that page, or you can go directly to it here https://new2java.dev.java.net/servlets/ProjectForumView
There are also many Java forums hosted by the Sun Developer Network. Home for those forums is at:
https://forum.java.sun.com/index.jspa and scrolling this page will allow you to view all the java related forums hosted.
Many topics are available.
A forum for New to Java programmers can be found at:
https://forum.java.sun.com/forum.jspa?forumID=54
back
|
