macOS Accessing Java API docs

pbw · Jul 2, 2009

I have downloaded the latest Java update, and the associated devdocs from ADC, and installed them. In the devdocs are the src.jar and docs.jar, at /System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM.Framework/Versions/1.6.0/Home.

The docs.jar contains the compressed Java API docs, but is there a "Mac" way to access the APIs? I have extracted them and put them in a convenient location, so that I can access then with a browser, which is my most frequent way of looking at them. Is there another way?

wrldwzrd89 · Jul 2, 2009

Do you use an IDE for your Java development? If you do, which one? The way you set up your IDE to look at the documentation depends on which IDE you use.

pbw · Jul 2, 2009

Thanks for the reply.

Yes, I use NetBeans and IntelliJ. I have no problem with setting up the docs for use in the IDEs - just tell them where the jar file is.

However, I frequently just browse the Javadocs, especially when I'm trying to find the right classes to do a particular job. That's when being able to browse with a browser comes in handy.

duggram · Jul 2, 2009

Now I don't understand your question. If you can access the JavaDocs from the IDE and you can browse them with your browser, what are you looking for?

iShater · Jul 2, 2009

Since a browser cannot read the contents of JARs, you will have to extract the java doc contents into a directory of your choice and view the HTML files from there.

sammich · Jul 2, 2009

Are you referring to something like this (http://java.sun.com/javase/6/docs/api/)?

iShater · Jul 2, 2009

sammich said:
Are you referring to something like this (http://java.sun.com/javase/6/docs/api/)?

Yep, he wants it local vs. going to the web to access it.

pbw · Jul 2, 2009

iShater said:
Since a browser cannot read the contents of JARs, you will have to extract the java doc contents into a directory of your choice and view the HTML files from there.

Exactly, and that's what I have done. My question is whether there is a procedure in place for doing just this, and putting the expanded docs into a standard location. It seems a bit of an oversight for Apple not to provide such a mechanism when they bundle up the src and the docs.

I saw a reference to a shell script that extracted the docs, in a thread from about 2002/3, for a much earlier version of Java, obviously. I was wondering whether there was a modern equivalent.

pbw · Jul 2, 2009

iShater said:
Yep, he wants it local vs. going to the web to access it.

Yep. It's useful to be able to access this stuff when I'm offline.

iShater · Jul 2, 2009

pbw said:
Exactly, and that's what I have done. My question is whether there is a procedure in place for doing just this, and putting the expanded docs into a standard location. It seems a bit of an oversight for Apple not to provide such a mechanism when they bundle up the src and the docs.

I saw a reference to a shell script that extracted the docs, in a thread from about 2002/3, for a much earlier version of Java, obviously. I was wondering whether there was a modern equivalent.

JARs are just zip files. Either use terminal to extract the contents or use a zip utility to extract it. I don't think there is really an "official" procedure for this.

sammich · Jul 2, 2009

pbw said:
Yep. It's useful to be able to access this stuff when I'm offline.

https://cds.sun.com/is-bin/INTERSHO...ctRef=jdk-6u10-docs-oth-JPR@CDS-CDS_Developer

If that link doesn't work then go to http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/index.jsp and scroll down to find "Documentation". I'm hoping it should be what you're looking for. I followed roughly the same procedure when downloading the v5 api's a couple years back.

pbw · Jul 2, 2009

I'm new to Macs. On my Linux systems, I would grab the Documentation bundle for a release of the JDK, and unpack it into the JDK directory, so I would have a /docs directory at the top level of the JDK. This was done by hand, so I don't have a problem with that.

However, I thought there might be a "mac way". Apparently not. I just found this:
http://confluence.concord.org/display/CCTR/Get+local+copies+of+Mac+OS+X+Java+source+code+and+Javadoc

gwynevans · Jul 29, 2009

pbw said:
However, I thought there might be a "mac way". Apparently not. I just found this:
http://confluence.concord.org/display/CCTR/Get+local+copies+of+Mac+OS+X+Java+source+code+and+Javadoc

I'm in the same position! It looks as if there used to be a unjarJavaDocumentation.sh for earlier versions, that unpacked to roots such as /System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM.framework/Versions/1.5.0/Resources/Documentation/Reference/doc/api/, but I've no idea where that would come from. (There's a Javadoc dashboard widget that looks in the above & equivalent roots for 1.4.2 & 1.6).

pbw · Jul 29, 2009

gwynevans said:
I'm in the same position! It looks as if there used to be a unjarJavaDocumentation.sh for earlier versions, that unpacked to roots such as /System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM.framework/Versions/1.5.0/Resources/Documentation/Reference/doc/api/, but I've no idea where that would come from. (There's a Javadoc dashboard widget that looks in the above & equivalent roots for 1.4.2 & 1.6).

That's good to know. In that case, I'll try dropping the expanded docs into Resources/Documentation.

Search

Search

macOS Accessing Java API docs

pbw

macrumors newbie

wrldwzrd89

macrumors G5

pbw

macrumors newbie

duggram

macrumors 6502

iShater

macrumors 604

sammich

macrumors 601

iShater

macrumors 604

pbw

macrumors newbie

pbw

macrumors newbie

iShater

macrumors 604

sammich

macrumors 601

pbw

macrumors newbie

gwynevans

macrumors newbie

pbw

macrumors newbie

Our Staff