My last post was about executing small Java programs from within vim, without leaving the editor to manually open a shell.

The goal was to rapidly execute example code for your own edification, or when showing code to other people - basically any time you need a Short, Self Contained, Correct (Compilable), Example (also known as an SSCCE).

While vim does indeed work for that purpose, I feel TextMate has the edge when it comes to running Java examples.

Here's what setting up and using TextMate to run Java programs on a Mac looks like:

• After you install TextMate, open the Bundle settings (in 'TextMate > Preferences > Bundles') and make sure the 'Java' checkbox is set:

• Open or compose your demo program, and make sure you've saved the file to disk.

• In the bottom status bar, Make sure the Java bundle is selected:

• Now simply use Command-R to run your code! A new window should open to display the output.