Windows - Visual Studio installation

This section offers a step-by-step guide for BFL installation with Visual Studio on Windows.

1. Download the BFL source code from the website: http://www.orocos.org/bfl/source. Unzip this code.
2. Create a folder $build$ and a folder $install$ where you will respectively build and install bfl (what's in a name?).
3. Install boost
   • The boost Getting Started Guide gives excellent installation instructions for windows: http://www.boost.org/more/getting_started/index.html. In accordance with these instructions we advice to use the installer provided by Boost Consulting.
   • Change the install of boost such that the include files are located under: $c:\backslash boost \backslash$ Remark that the first part is arbirary, but the $include$ part not; this will make the bfl installation easier.
4. Install CMake:
   • You can find cmake at www.cmake.org. Install it for windows.
5. Run CMake:
   • Go to the start menu to start the CMake-GUI.
   • Fill in the location of the source code e.g.:

     	 	c:\Users\username\Desktop\orocos-bfl-0.6.0-pre1-src
     

   • Fill in the location of the build directory (which you previously created), e.g.:

     	 	c:\Users\username\Desktop\orocos-bfl-0.6.0-pre1-src\build
     

   • Press the Configure botton. Select `Visual Studio 8, 2005' as a generator. You well get a lot of `errors' (remark this are actually not errors but messages). You can press the `OK' botton to check all messages or just press the `Cancel' botton to supress all further messages. Also mind the CPP-Unit error, which will prevent you from running the CPP-unit tests, but won't bother the examples nor any of your applications.
   • Fill in:
     • CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE: release
     • CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX: $c:\backslash Users \backslash username \backslash Desktop \backslash orocos-bfl-0.6.0-pre1-src \backslash build$
     • LIBRARY_TYPE: static
     • MATRIX_INSTALL: $c:\backslash boost \backslash$
     • MATRIX_LIB: boost
     • RNG_INSTALL: $c:\backslash boost \backslash$
     • RNG_LIB: boost
   • Press the Configure botton until you can press OK.
   • Press OK. CMake will shut down now, and BFL is ready to build. (If you get unexpected errors check the common problems section ).
6. Build BFL with Visual Studio
   • Start Visual Studio through the Start botton.
   • Open the project `ALL_BUILD' located in the build directory.
   • Build the project (right mouse botton, build). (If you get unexpected errors check the common problems section).
   • Build the INSTALL project to install everything.

In the $\mathtt{\tilde{ }}$/sources/sources/bfl/examples directory, you find some example BFL filters. A good next step is to check out the BFL tutorial on http://www.orocos.org/bfl, for a step-by-step introduction in building your own filters in BFL.


Good luck!