Plugins can be installed to IJC to enhance current functionalities or too add new functionalities, such as visual elements or calculations. To add plugins to IJC, the plugin .nmb file must be first downloaded from a source (e.g., IJC website) and then installed using Plugin Manager. Once the .nmb file is downloaded, plugins can be installed offline, if necessary.
Choose Tools > Plugins from the main menu and select the Downloaded tab.
Click Add Plugins and browse to the location of the downloaded .nbm file. Select the file and click Open.
Repeat the previous step for each plugin that you wish to add.
Click Install and complete the installation guide.
If the plugin you selected in the file chooser doesn't show up in the Downloaded tab of the Plugin Manager, you probably already have the same or a newer version installed. Check the Installed tab to see if the plugin is there and activated.
Practical example of plugin installation and usage can be found here.
IJC enables you to deactivate installed plugins that you do not need to minimize startup time and save memory. Deactivated plugins and modules are not deleted from your installation directory, but are simply ignored by IJC. You can re-activate them at any time.
To activate or deactivate an installed plugin:
Choose Tools > Plugins from the main menu and then click the Installed tab in the Plugin Manager.
In the left pane, select the plugin you wish to activate or deactivate. The icon in the Active column indicates the status of the plugin.
In the right pane, click Activate or Deactivate to activate or deactivate the plugin.
The icon for the plugin in the left pane reflects the new status of the plugin.
Click Close to exit the Plugin Manager.
{primary} Some plugins may require you to restart IJC.
The following table defines the icons used in the Installed tab of the Plugin Manager to indicate the status of plugins.
Icon | Description |
---|---|
The plugin is installed and activated. | |
The plugin is installed but is not yet activated. | |
The plugin is installed but deactivated. | |
The module is installed but is not yet activated. |
Plugin Manager also checks the registered update centers to see if there are new plugins or new versions of already installed plugins available. If new or updated plugins are available, you can select, download, and install the plugins using the Plugin Manager.
To add an update center:
Choose Tools > Plugins from the main menu to open the Plugin Manager.
Click the Settings tab to display the registered update centers.
Click Add to open the Update Center Customizer dialog box.
Type the name of the update center and the URL and click OK. In the Settings tab of the Plugin Manager you can also do the following:
Deactivate an update center by deselecting the Active checkbox for the update center you wish to deactivate. You can reactivate the update center later if you wish.
Edit the details of an update center by selecting the update center in the left pane and clicking Edit in the right pane.
Remove an update center by selecting the update center in the left pane and clicking Remove.
By default, IJC periodically checks the update centers for new updates. You can set the interval or specify that IJC should not automatically check for updates.
To schedule update checks:
In the Settings tab of the Plugin Manager, choose a frequecy from the Check Period drop-down list. Choose Never if you do not want IJC to automatically check for updates.
Click Proxy Settings if you need to set any proxy settings needed to enable IJC to access the update centers.
To update installed plugins from the Update Center:
Choose Tools > Plugins from the main menu to open the Plugin Manager.
Click the Updates tab to display available updates of installed plugins.
In the left pane, select the plugins you wish to update and click Update.
Complete the pages in the installer to download and install the update.
The left pane of the Updates tab displays the installed plugins which have updates available from the update centers. By default, IJC regularly checks the registered update centers for available updates of installed plugins. If no plugins are displayed in the left pane, it means that no updates were available the last time IJC checked the update center.
To add new plugins from the Update Center:
choose Tools > Plugins from the main menu to open the Plugin Manager.
Click the Available Plugins tab to display plugins that are available but not installed.
In the left pane, select the plugins you wish to add and click Install.
Complete the pages in the installer to download and install the plugin.
{primary} Some plugins may require you to restart IJC to complete the update process.