How to Install Eclipse on Ubuntu

Eclipse comes with many flavors (See "Eclipse Packages" @ https://www.eclipse.org/downloads/compare.php?release=luna):

• To use Eclipse for Java programming, choose "Eclipse IDE for Java Developers" or "Eclipse IDE for Java EE Developers". You need to first install JDK. Read "How to install JDK on Ubuntu".
• To use Eclipse for PHP programming, choose "Eclipse IDE for PHP Developers".
• To use Eclipse for C/C++ programming, choose "Eclipse IDE for C/C++ Developers".
• Nonetheless, you can install any package, and then add more features.

To install Eclipse (e.g, for Java Programming):

1. Download Eclipse from http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/. Choose "Linux" 32-bit or 64-bit ⇒ "Eclipse IDE for Java Developers" (or "Eclipse Standard|Classic") for Java SE program development; or "Eclipse IDE for Java EE Developers" for developing webapps. You will receive a TAR file (e.g., "eclipse-jee-luna-R-linux-gtk-x86_64.tar.gz") in the "~/Downloads" folder.
2. Install:

   // Unzip the tarball into /usr/local
   $ cd /usr/local
   $ sudo tar xzvf ~/Downloads/eclipse-jee-luna-R-linux-gtk-x86_64.tar.gz
         // Extract the downloaded package
         // x: extract, z: for unzipping gz, v: verbose, f: filename
         // You can also unzip in "File Explorer" by double-clicking the tarball.
    
   // Change ownership
   $ cd /usr/local
   $ sudo chown -R your-username:your-groupname eclipse
         // Change ownership to your chosen username and groupname
         // -R recursive
    
   // Set up a symlink
   $ cd /usr/bin
   $ sudo ln -s /usr/local/eclipse/eclipse
         // Make a symlink in /usr/bin, which is in the PATH.
   $ ls -ld eclipse
   lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 26 Aug 30 11:53 eclipse -> /usr/local/eclipse/eclipse
   $ which eclipse
   /usr/bin/eclipse
   $ whereis eclipse
   eclipse: /usr/bin/eclipse /usr/bin/X11/eclipse /usr/local/eclipse

To run Eclipse, open the "/usr/local/eclipse" folder and click on the "Eclipse" icon; or start a "Terminal", enter "eclipse".

Pin Eclipse on Launcher

To pin Eclipse on the launcher, create a /usr/share/applications/eclipse.desktop file with the following contents:

[Desktop Entry]
Name=Eclipse 
Type=Application
Exec=eclipse
Terminal=false
Icon=/usr/local/eclipse/icon.xpm
Comment=Integrated Development Environment
NoDisplay=false
Categories=Development;IDE;
Name[en]=Eclipse

Start Eclipse, right-click on the Eclipse icon on launcher ⇒ lock to launcher.