% Checklist for New Developers
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{\scriptsize Revision: \footnotesize \$Id: cha-checklist.ltx-inc,v 1.1 2010/05/21 20:12:20 joverbey Exp $ $}

\begin{list}{$\bigcirc$}{}

\item \textbf{Install Photran, read its documentation, and become a proficient user.}
Generally speaking, you cannot fix or enhance a program you don't know how to use.

\item \textbf{Check out Photran's source code from CVS and run the test suite.}
See Appendices~\ref{app:cvs} and~\ref{app:testsuite}.

\item \textbf{Join the \href{https://dev.eclipse.org/mailman/listinfo/ptp-dev}{ptp-dev mailing list}.}
Photran is a component of the Parallel Tools Platform (PTP); this is where discussions about PTP
development (including Photran) take place.  Questions from developers (like you), release planning,
discussions about API changes, etc.~all take place here.

\item \textbf{Join the \href{https://dev.eclipse.org/mailman/listinfo/photran-dev}{photran-dev mailing list}.}

\item \textbf{Join the \href{https://dev.eclipse.org/mailman/listinfo/photran}{photran users' mailing list}.}
It is good to keep track of what Photran's users are discussing, and as a Photran developer you will probably be able to answer many of their questions as well.

\item \textbf{Create a Bugzilla account.}
You will need to \href{https://bugs.eclipse.org/bugs/createaccount.cgi}{create an account at bugs.eclipse.org} if you don't already have one. When you eventually want to contribute code to Photran, you will need to do it by attaching a patch to a Bugzilla bug.

\item \textbf{Get a book or two on Eclipse plug-in development.}
Eventually, you'll want to buy (or check out from the library) a book on Eclipse plug-in development.
\textit{\href{http://www.amazon.com/Java-Developers-Guide-Eclipse-2nd/dp/0321305027/}{\emph{The
Java Developer's Guide to Eclipse}}} by D'Anjou et al.~is a good choice.
\textit{\href{http://www.amazon.com/Eclipse-Building-Commercial-Quality-Plug-Ins/dp/0321228472}{\emph{Eclipse:
Building Commercial-Quality Plug-ins}}} is also recommended.

\item \textbf{Learn the basics of Eclipse plug-in development.}
If you get D'Anjou's book, read Chapters 7-9 and 21.
After you figure out the basics of Eclipse development (like how plugin.xml works), it's best to just start fixing bugs or adding features, returning to the book as a reference when you have something more specific you need to do.

\item \textbf{Read the Photran Developer's Guide.}
Chapters 1, 2, and 3 apply to everyone. The other chapters are more specialized; for example, the chapters on Parsing and Refactoring only apply to people developing refactorings, and the Photran Editors chapter applies mostly to people adding features to the Fortran editor.

\end{list}