I'm trying to write a Python script for ArcMap that will call a java .jar file. Within the Python script, if I can establish a connection to the .jar file, all I should need to do is write out one line of java code. I've been reading some of the responses to questions in this forum (in particular: http://forums.arcgis.com/threads/4883-java-.esriaddin-classpath?highlight=java+addin), and it sounds like there are a few issues I need to consider. Unfortunately, I'm fairly new to Python, so I have a lot of questions about this....
I think the .jar file I want to use is independent. Does this mean that I can just place the .jar file in the java/lib/ext file and call it directly in the python script, or import the .jar file at the beginning of the script?
The forum I was reading talked specifically about adding a .jar file to an .esriaddin file. Do I specifically need an .esriaddin file to call a .jar file, or is this more for .esriaddin files that are written in java code? In any case, where can I go to find more information about this?
I have also been looking at the "spline with barriers" script tool for ArcMap, which does use some java .jar files. It looks like in this case the classpath needs to be established, and the java line of code parsed together using the .append method. Is this method a better approach for what I want to do?
