One of the most important software development tools is the "integrated development environment", or "IDE". Popular IDEs for Java-based development include Eclipse, NetBeans, JBuilder, Emacs, and Vim. Hackystat sensors for IDEs monitor the time spent editing files and, depending upon the IDE and sensor, the types of activities the developer engages in while doing development. For example, the Hackystat application named "Zorro" monitors developer behaviors in the Eclipse IDE with the goal of inferring when Test Driven Development behaviors are occurring.
The specifics of how to install any particular IDE such as Eclipse or Netbeans go beyond the scope of this chapter. Please consult the installation documentation associated with your IDE of choice. Check the Reference Guide associated with your Hackystat server to determine which IDEs have Hackystat sensors.
Each time you invoke an IDE to modify the artifacts of software development, the Hackystat IDE sensor can unobtrusively collect information about the files you modify and the ways in which you modify them.
To accomplish this, you must first install the IDE sensor. General instructions on installing sensors are provided in Chapter 2, Client-side configuration: Tool sensor installation; instructions for specific sensors are provided in Chapter 26, Sensors. For example, Figure 4.26, “ HackyInstaller configuration screen for Eclipse ” shows the HackyInstaller window after successful installation of the Eclipse IDE sensor.
Figure 4.27, “ The Eclipse IDE while editing StackyHack's build.xml ” illustrates the Eclipse IDE with the Hackystat sensor installed during editing of a StackyHack source file. The status line shows that a statechange event has been generated on this file, indicating that editing has taken place during the previous 30 seconds.
Once you've installed your sensor into your IDE, Activity and/or DevEvent sensor data will be sent to the server. You can verify that this data was received at the server by using the List Sensor Data command. Figure 4.28, “ List Sensor Data with Activity data from Eclipse ” illustrates a few Activity sensor data entries generated by the Eclipse IDE while working on the StackyHack system.
Figure 4.29, “ List Sensor Data with DevEvent data from Eclipse ” illustrates a few DevEvent sensor data entries generated by the Eclipse IDE during this same time period.
