GWT build tool for the future

7 years ago • updated by 7 years ago • 1

With the emphasis on replacing GWT generator with APT which build tool is better suited for a GWT project? Performance and compliance wise. Maven, Gradel?

Which plugins work best with Eclipse environment? Why is the Maven Mojo plugin still used in a majority of projects?

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7 years ago

I am experimenting both with IntelliJ and Eclipse. I use maven so far for my projects - it is very well supported by the IDEs and their tooling. In Eclipse you need to add the m2e-apt plugin, but IntelliJ comes with all of the pieces it needs already. Eclipse has a bug or quirk that makes it difficult to edit processors in the same workspace that you are running them in, and IntelliJ has a bug that prevents even external processors from correctly knowing when to rerun, causing some build issues from time to time.

In maven, the maven-compiler-plugin seems to have advanced far enough in version 3.5.1 that no other mojos are required to make it go.

https://immutables.github.io/apt.html gives some helpful steps to get either IDE running on a maven project with external processors.

https://github.com/Vertispan/aptexample is a demo example I built last week to try very simple processors in each IDE.

https://youtrack.jetbrains.com/issue/IDEA-179014 is a bug I filed against IntelliJ to improve their incremental rebuild.

I am looking to explore migrating to gradle, but I do like the long-term stability offered by Java, GWT, and Maven, even if they aren't necessarily each the most expressive or the coolest tools. I have been convinced by colleagues to give Gradle a shot, that it has stabilized enough.

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