I would argue just the opposite actually. Eclipse has a very intimidating interface intended for experienced developers -- I remember when I was learning Java I used Eclipse and it was not user friendly at all.
Also, my first intro CS course also used Karel the Robot, and while it was cool that I could see this guy run around on the screen, I kept wondering "what is the point of this"? It didn't seem useful or related to writing actual programs at all. While it is less abstract than typing commands in a a prompt, it still felt very contrived.
But I guess that depends entirely on the student's motivation for learning to code -- are they looking to build a website? To understand how computers work? Because they like solving puzzles? Just to "try it out"? Teaching through a robot game like Karel probably would not be a good approach for those who want to get their hands dirty and build actual stuff (and Java is probably not the best first language). But for those who are more interested in understanding computer science / puzzles, those who value the problem solving aspect of programming, a tangible game like Karel might be better.
However, I'd still say CodeAcademy's approach with browser based lessons is much better -- there's a much lower barrier to getting started than downloading and setting up an IDE. Furthermore, they have complete control of their site design. I don't think introducing REPL at the beginning is the best idea, but it's better than hitting the student with a sledgehammer like Eclipse.
Perhaps a compromise would be a very simple game in Ruby/Python? There was a web based Ruby game on HN recently, intended for experienced programmers, in which you wrote the AI for a bot navigating through a map. Obviously that is too complicated for a beginner, but I imagine something simpler could be both appealing, engaging, and accessible.
Also, my first intro CS course also used Karel the Robot, and while it was cool that I could see this guy run around on the screen, I kept wondering "what is the point of this"? It didn't seem useful or related to writing actual programs at all. While it is less abstract than typing commands in a a prompt, it still felt very contrived.
But I guess that depends entirely on the student's motivation for learning to code -- are they looking to build a website? To understand how computers work? Because they like solving puzzles? Just to "try it out"? Teaching through a robot game like Karel probably would not be a good approach for those who want to get their hands dirty and build actual stuff (and Java is probably not the best first language). But for those who are more interested in understanding computer science / puzzles, those who value the problem solving aspect of programming, a tangible game like Karel might be better.
However, I'd still say CodeAcademy's approach with browser based lessons is much better -- there's a much lower barrier to getting started than downloading and setting up an IDE. Furthermore, they have complete control of their site design. I don't think introducing REPL at the beginning is the best idea, but it's better than hitting the student with a sledgehammer like Eclipse.
Perhaps a compromise would be a very simple game in Ruby/Python? There was a web based Ruby game on HN recently, intended for experienced programmers, in which you wrote the AI for a bot navigating through a map. Obviously that is too complicated for a beginner, but I imagine something simpler could be both appealing, engaging, and accessible.