The appendix provides a practical overview of the software tools used in the book’s examples and suggests common alternatives so readers can follow along with the projects in their preferred environment. It is framed as a companion guide for setting up the development and testing tools needed to work through Spring-based applications.
For development, the recommended IDE is JetBrains IntelliJ IDEA, with the free Community edition being sufficient for opening and building the sample projects, while the paid Ultimate edition offers additional conveniences. Eclipse is presented as a solid open-source alternative, especially when paired with Spring Tools Suite, which adds features that make Spring development easier in supported IDEs.
For testing and database work, the appendix highlights Postman and cURL as ways to exercise REST endpoints, with cURL serving as a lighter command-line option. It also recommends MySQL Server and MySQL Workbench for local database examples, noting SQLYog as an alternative client, and includes PostgreSQL with pgAdmin as another database setup that can be used in place of MySQL when needed.
FAQ
What IDE did the book use to implement the examples?JetBrains IntelliJ IDEA was used to implement the examples in the book. The free IntelliJ Community edition can be used to open or build the example projects, while the Ultimate version requires a license.Can I use Eclipse instead of IntelliJ IDEA for Spring development?Yes. Eclipse IDE is recommended as an open-source alternative to IntelliJ IDEA, and using it with Spring Tools provides a better experience for Spring app development.What is Spring Tools Suite used for?Spring Tools Suite (STS) is a set of tools that can be integrated with open-source IDEs like Eclipse to make Spring app implementation easier.What tool does the book recommend for testing REST endpoints?Postman is recommended as an easy-to-use tool for testing REST endpoints in the book’s examples.Is there a simpler alternative to Postman for calling REST endpoints?Yes. cURL is suggested as a simple command-line alternative to Postman for testing the REST examples provided in the book.What database server is recommended for local testing of the book’s examples?MySQL Server is recommended as a DBMS that you can install locally to test examples that require a local database.What tool can I use to manage and inspect MySQL databases?MySQL Workbench is recommended as a client tool for MySQL Server. It can be used to access databases and validate that the app works correctly with persisted data.What is an alternative to MySQL Workbench?SQLYog is listed as an alternative tool to MySQL Workbench for working with MySQL databases.Can PostgreSQL be used instead of MySQL in the book’s examples?Yes. PostgreSQL is described as an alternative DBMS to MySQL that can be used to test the examples or build similar database-backed apps.What tool is needed to administer PostgreSQL?pgAdmin is recommended for administering a PostgreSQL DBMS, especially if you use PostgreSQL instead of MySQL for a database-based example.
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