[ros-users] Running RVIZ from source code (not from binaries)

[Ingo Lütkebohle]

Benoit,

On 28.05.2010 01:40, Benoit Larochelle wrote:
> 1) Is it possible to set-up a development environment in an IDE (ideally
> Netbeans) so that the IDE understands the code, the dependencies, and
> whatever else it needs. I want to be able to click to the buttons
> "compile" and "run" just like a Java project, for example. (I imagine
> that the "compile" button would have to call "rosmake" and the "run"
> button would have to call "rosrun".)

Short answer: Yes ;-)

Basically, you first set up the project as usual (i.e., call cmake). 
Call rosmake once to make sure all dependencies are built. Then create a 
NetBeans C++ project "with existing sources". When using this project 
type, NetBeans will call "make" by default and this is fine, it will 
build your project, because CMake works by creating a Makefile. You only 
need to call rosmake when you want to check all dependencies and it 
takes much longer than make, so you usually don't do that all the time.

For running, simply put the required rosrun commands into your projects 
"run" configuration.

It is not a total integration, because you still have to add files by 
editing the CMakeLists.txt. Also, NetBeans will not pick up the includes 
from the Makefile, you have to configure those manually. They don't 
change often, though, so this is usually fine.

On the upside, you can just compile and run from the IDE and it will 
navigate your headers once you have set up the include paths. Thats 
about all you can get from most IDEs, when not using their custom 
project formats.

cheers,
Ingo