# AspectJ Documentation and Resources

AspectJ tm is a seamless aspect-oriented extension to Javatm. The compiler and development tools are available under an open-source license, require Java 1.3 to run, and produce code that runs in JDK 1.1 and later VM's. For the latest materials, see http://eclipse.org/aspectj.

Section | Contents
docs | FAQ, Quick Reference, programming and development guides, API and example code.
distributions | AspectJ itself and development environment support for Eclipse, Emacs, JBuilder, and Netbeans.
resources | aosd.net; AspectJ project the bug db, and mailing lists for users and developers.
paths | for those new to AspectJ

### AspectJ documentation

Documentation | Description
--- | ---
AspectJ Quick Reference | This is a two-page quick reference for the AspectJ language.

Programming Guide (printable html )

This introduces AOP and the AspectJ language. Getting Started describes basic semantics, and shows development- and production-time applications. The AspectJ Language describes join points, pointcuts, advice, and introduction, all features new to AOP. Examples walks you through the examples included with the documentation, and there are two short chapters on useful Idioms and a few Pitfalls The appendices have reference information: the Quick Reference summarizes AspectJ syntax, the Language Semantics best describes AspectJ usage, and Implementation Notes describes how the current version is limited to code the compiler controls.

Development Environment Guide (printable html ) | This has a guide to ajc, the command-line compiler; ajbrowser, the stand-alone GUI for compiling and viewing crosscutting structure; and the Ant tasks for building AspectJ programs.
AspectJ API | API documentation for AspectJ runtime classes. `JoinPoint` shows the state automatically available at each join point.
FAQ | Frequently-asked questions about the AspectJ language, tools, and project.
README-12 | Changes and porting guide for the AspectJ 1.2.0 release.
README-11 | Changes and porting guide for the AspectJ 1.1.0 release.
Porting guide | How users can convert code from earlier versions of AspectJ.
Changes | Changes between the latest releases.
Examples | AspectJ code to demonstrate some language features and implement JavaBean properties, the Observer pattern, a tracing library, and a game application where aspects handle display updating.

### AspectJ distributions

Distributions | Description
--- | ---
AspectJ | The AspectJ distribution contains binaries for the compiler, structure browser, and Ant taskdefs, as well as the documentation and examples.
AspectJ source code | Source code for AspectJ is available under the open-source CPL 1.0 license from the CVS repositories for the AspectJ project. See the FAQ entry.
AspectJ for Eclipse | AspectJ Development Environment support for Eclipse is available under CPL 1.0 from the eclipse.org project site http://eclipse.org/ajdt
AspectJ for Emacs | AspectJ Development Environment support for Emacs is available under the GPL from the sourceforge project site http://aspectj4emacs.sourceforge.net
AspectJ for JBuilder | AspectJ Development Environment support for JBuilder is available under the Mozilla Public License 1.1 from the sourceforge project site http://aspectj4jbuildr.sourceforge.net
AspectJ for Netbeans | AspectJ Development Environment support for Netbeans is available under the Mozilla Public License 1.1 from the sourceforge project site http://aspectj4netbean.sourceforge.net

### Other AspectJ resources

Resources | Description
--- | ---

Mail lists

AspectJ users discuss tips and best practices for writing AspectJ programs on the aspectj-users@eclipse.org mail list. AspectJ developers discuss issues with developing AspectJ tools on the aspectj-dev@eclipse.org list. You can subscribe to the announce list (`aspectj-announce@eclipse.org`) to get occasional emails about AspectJ releases and relevant events. Only those subscribed to a list may post to it. Go to the AspectJ home page to view list archives or subscribe to the list.

Bug database | Use the Eclipse project's Bugzilla database to view and submit bugs against the AspectJ product components Compiler (for the AspectJ compiler, ajc) IDE (for AJBrowser and AJDE bugs), Ant (for the Ant tasks), and Docs (for the documentation). Bugs all developers should know about are flagged with the "info" keyword. See the FAQ entry for instructions on submitting compiler bugs.
http://aosd.net - the AOSD web site | This site has discussion and announcements related to aspect-oriented software development (AOSD) in general. Use announce@aosd.net to get and publish notices about AOSD workshops, conferences, and technology releases. Use discuss@aosd.net for general AOSD discussions.

### Suggested paths for those new to AspectJ

To learn the AspectJ language, read the Programming Guide, keeping the Semantics appendix nearby as the best reference for AspectJ usage. Focus initially on the join point model and pointcuts, concepts AOP adds to OOP. To read about how the examples work, see the Examples section in the Programming Guide. View and navigate the crosscutting structure using the `ajbrowser` structure viewer, as described in the AspectJ Browser section of the Development Environment Guide.

To start using AspectJ with your own code, modify the example aspects to apply to your classes. As you learn, use the compiler's `-Xlint` flags to catch some common mistakes. (Understand that the current implementation is limited to code the compiler controls.)

To plan how to adopt AspectJ into a project, read the Programming Guide on development- and production-time aspects and the FAQ entries for How should I start using AspectJ?, Deciding to adopt AspectJ, the Development tools sections (one, two), and AspectJ as open-source.

Enjoy the language!

The AspectJ Team

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