Getting into Android development can be quite a challenge, particularly if you're new to Java or Eclipse or both. Whatever your past experience, you might feel tempted to start working away without checking that you're making the best use of the IDE. In this article, we'll go over a few tips, tools and resources that can maximize Eclipse's usefulness and hopefully save you a few headaches. You might of course already be familiar with some (or all) of them and even be aware of others that we haven't covered. If so, please do feel free to mention them.
I've used Eclipse for Java development on and off for a few years, having recently started learning Android casually. I'm surprised at the lack of easily digestible material online about basic aspects of Android development, such as the topic of this article. I've found some useful information out there in disparate locations that are not particularly easy to come across. Most of the online content is still in the official Android Developer Guide, but it has to be said that it is pretty limited in practical material.