Getting Started

Grab the latest release of Eclipse Indigo for your platform. Any package will work though Eclipse Classic is a safe bet. If you are only interested in working with the BEL Editor, another option is to download a platform runtime binary, which is smaller in size and provides only what you need. You'll also need a Java Runtime Environment (JRE) to launch Eclipse.

Installation

Installation is simple.

1. Install a Java Runtime Environment (JRE).
2. Extract the downloaded Eclipse version to a location of your choosing
3. Launch Eclipse from where it was extracted
4. When Eclipse has loaded, select the Help menu, followed by Install New Software...
5. Enter either the stable or unstable update site URL from the Eclipse repository
6. Select BEL Editor from the list shown and follow the wizard to finish installation

Versions

The BEL Editor is provided in two versions - stable and unstable. The stable version should be used for production use. The unstable version is meant to try new, possibly experimental features, that are not yet considered stable.

Configuration

Before creating your first BEL project, you'll need to configure the BEL Editor.

1. Open the Eclipse preferences. Preferences are found under the Window menu on Windows and Linux and the Eclipse menu on Mac OS X.

2. Click BEL Editor.

3. Click Browse and navigate to the base of your BEL Framework installation. This is the path containing belc.sh and belc.cmd.

   We recommend keeping the BEL Framework local to the BEL Editor installation as it is required for day-to-day use. You may encounter issues with the BEL Framework configured on a network share.

4. Optional: If you have Cytoscape installed, click Browse and navigate to the base of your Cytoscape installation.