Install the IDE on your system
Installing your environment is important even after you’ve started.
When you choose an IDE, you may think of it as any other application. There are a few details that you need to consider before you make your final selection, though. One is that the IDE will have been created with a specific language. Eclipse is written in Java, like several others in this comparison. This means that you need to have a JVM running.
If you can have an install where you can easily adapt the IDE to your newest project, you’ll save yourself a lot of trouble. It’s also useful to be able to install an IDE and know how to remove the whole thing. This is why you should check if there’s a snap or an Appimage available. Once you’re happy using the package on a daily basis, you should install it on your regular system.
Eclipse comes as a collection of jar files, and you run them from the directory where you copied them to. Using apt you can also install many compilers and other tools. Eclipse also comes as many different web services, for those of you who are unwilling to install your IDE. Another benefit of this is that it becomes easier to cooperate on the project if you can do so online.
Qt Creator is available as an apt package on Github. There’s also a recipe for an Appimage, but it’s not a recent product and so you have to build one yourself. Qt is a C++ application, so you can use it to build for other platforms, for example.
Netbeans exists in the Ubuntu repos and as an official snap. Interestingly, the snap is very new, if not the newest. This ensures it stands out among the other IDES in this Roundup. This package is also written in Java and therefore excels for Java development, but also has extensions for other languages.
Pycharm comes as a snap for Linux. You also have a manager for all Intellij IDES, available as an Appimage. Many of the Intellij libraries are in your ordinary repository. Note that you need the other tools to work in different languages.
Code::blocks can be installed with apt or the source code. The nightly builds are available as debian files at www.codeblocks.org. It’s a good idea to start your adventures with IDES by compiling them yourself into a snap or an Appimage. Taking this approach means you’ll have a clean, lean machine for other projects.