To recap the process needed to use a library:
Once per library:
- Acquire the library. Download it from the website or via a package manager.
- Install the library. Unzip it to a directory or install it via a package manager.
Once per project:
- Tell the compiler where to look for the header file(s) for the library.
- Tell the linker where to look for the precompiled library file(s) for the library (if there are any).
- Tell the linker which static or import precompiled library files to link (if there are any).
- #include the library’s header file(s) in your program.
- Make sure the program know where to find any dynamic libraries being used.
Steps 1 and 2 -- Acquire and install library
Download and install the library to your hard disk. See the tutorial on static and dynamic libraries for more information about this step.
Steps 3 and 4 -- Tell the compiler where to find headers and library files
A) Go to the Project menu and pick Project -> Properties (it should be at the bottom)
B) Under the “Configuration” dropdown, make sure that “All configurations” is selected.
C) In the left window pane, select “Configuration Properties” -> “VC++ Directories”.
D) On the “Include Directories” line, add the path to the .h files for the library (make sure this is separated from previous entries by a semicolon).
E) On the “Library Directories”, add the path to the library (.lib) files for the library (if there are any).
F) Click “OK”.
Step 5 -- Tell the linker which libraries your program is using
For step 5, we need to add the library (.lib) files from the library to our project (if there are any -- if not, you can skip this step). We do this on an individual project basis.
A) Go to the Project menu and pick Project -> Properties (it should be at the bottom)
B) Under the “Configuration” dropdown, make sure that “All configurations” is selected.
C) In the left window pane, select “Configuration Properties” -> “Linker” -> “Input”.
D) Add the name of your .lib file to the list of “Additional Dependencies” (separated from previous entries by a semicolon)
E) Click “OK”.
Steps 6 and 7 -- #include header files and make sure project can find DLLs
Simply #include the header file(s) from the library in your project as per usual.
See the tutorial A1 -- Static and dynamic libraries for more information on step 7.
The vcpkg package manager
vcpkg is a Microsoft-developed package manager that makes it easier to download, install, manage, and use C++ libraries. It integrates with Visual Studio. See this page for more information on how to install and use vcpkg.