David Aldrich wrote:
> Hi
>
> I have a need to serialize
some STL containers in our C++
> application. We build for Linux and
Windows but do not currently use
> Boost. Adoption of Boost would
seem to demand that we install the
> complete Boost library on all our
development machines. This is
> straightforward but would be a
serious project decision.
>
> Would it be
possible to use the Serialization library by just adding
> the
Serialization header files to our project directory and compiling
> them
with our project?
Unfortunately no.
Part of the serialization library is implemented in
compiled library form
(dll or static library).
Some of the examples which use a limited subset of
the serialization
library are header only - but these are
exceptions.
The library includes a directory VC7IDE which
includes a Visual Studio
solution which contains projects for the library
build, demos, and tests.
This is what I use for development so I'm confident
it works. If one uses
this you don't have to use the bjam
system.
>
> Perhaps later we could install Boost in full …
>
Your strategy of getting started by just including
some headers is
a good one - that's how I got started with
boost. Unfortunately it
won't get you access to the serialization
library.
One note: Assuming you decide to bite the
bullet and do the
build of boost on your system, remember it's
generally a one
time thing. That is, once you have the
libraries and dlls built
you VS projects just include headers and the
library directory.
So though it might seem intimidating, it's one
(short) episode
of pain - rewarded with a long period of
satisfaction.
Robert Ramey