Java SDK and Eclipse Installation Instructions

Installing the Java SDK

First of all, you don't want to install just the JRE (Java Runtime Environment). This is sufficient to run Java programs, but it is not enough to compile Java programs. So you need to download the SDK (Software Development Kit), which includes the JRE, but also includes the compiler and other tools useful for software development. Here are the steps for installing the SDK:

Click on http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4.2/download.html
From here, click on Download J2SE SDK
Accept the service agreement and click Continue
Click on Windows Offline Installation, Multi-language (j2sdk-1_4_2_05-windows-i586-p.exe, 51.09 MB)
Save this to your hard drive, then run the executable to install the SDK. That's it! By default, I believe the SDK is installed to C:\j2sdk-1_4_2_05

Installing Eclipse

Eclipse is a popular IDE (Integrated Development Environment) for Java development. Here's how to download and install it!

Go to http://download2.eclipse.org/downloads/
Click on Latest Release 3.0.1
Click on "http" next to "Windows 98/ME/2000/XP": This will download a "zip" file to your PC.
Extract this file to your hard drive. If you extract it directly to the C:\ drive, it will reside in C:\eclipse.
That's it! Just click on "eclipse.exe" in the installation directory to run it -- or create a shortcut for your desktop or Start menu if you prefer (eclipse does not have an installation program that does this for you).