How to use

There are many ways to make a task usable in ant. This manual covers:
  1. Installation:
    Jars are copied into $ANT_HOME/lib
  2. Static Configuration:
    Jars are included in CLASSPATH
  3. Absolute (Dynamic) Configuration:
    Locations are defined external (typically via an Environment variable or a properties file) and resolved in the script.
  4. Relative (Dynamic) Configuration:
    Jars are located relative to the project directory.
NOTE: We don't use abstraction in the examples to make them easier and straight forward. A good design guide is The Elements Of Ant Style.

Installation

This alternative is the easiest one and recommended in Ant's manual.

Preparation:

Definition:

Static Configuration

This alternative can be useful, if one dont't want to "install" tools whenever he updates Ant. It is a pragmatically solution to solve some issues but using CLASSPATH is NOT RECOMMENDED by Ant's manual.

Preparation:

Definition:

Absolute (Dynamic) Configuration

This alternative is often used in distributed projects, that use local tool installations. The build is based on a expected set of tools on the user's machine. The information where this tools are located is passed to Ant. There are different ways to pass information to Ant. I'm normally using OS Environment variables.

Preparation:

Definition:

Relative (Dynamic) Configuration

This alternative is typically used in projects, that use tool installations in a versioning system (f.e. CVS).

Preparation:

Definition: