[boost] Customer Friendlier Boost Installation

From: Paul A Bristow (pbristow_at_[hidden])
Date: 2005-05-25 04:12:42

Recently we had a flurry of discussion of why Boost is not more widely used.

I have used some bits of Boost happily for years, but recently I felt I had
to use it 'properly' so concluded it was time I used the bjam build system -
something I had felt looked a bit clever.

Indeed my suspicion was proved correct - I couldn't get it to work.  The
instructions are far too Unix/Make oriented for this mere Windows hacker;
the Wiki Windows specific instructions are much better but suggest copying
(duplicating) a lot of files to avoid an addition to the include
directories, and don't apply to the most recent compilers.

Victor Wagner gave some hints recently using environment variables, but not
the full text.

I don't doubt the usefulness of the bjam to the congescenti - only with this
could the incredibly impressive build & test system allow all the cracks and
chasms of compiler non-compliance and language imprecision to be papered
over - Boost's great strength.

But if we are to interest your average Windows IDE programmer, for whom MAKE
is a blank or a distant nightmare, IMO we need some much better and simpler
instructions, including lots of examples of input and output, and to be as
well tested as the rest of Boost code.  Like it or not, these are the
potential customers and I spoken to many who are put off by the 'build
barrier'.

I suggest that we explicitly say that you can use all of Boost (except the
ones that must have built libraries) by adding to the include list - and say
exactly how in Windows IDE-ese.

If you share my concern, would some someone like to prepare something?
Or at least provide details of their way of doing it.
I will be willing to help with checking/editing.

Paul

Paul A Bristow
Prizet Farmhouse, Kendal, Cumbria UK LA8 8AB
[phone]  [phone]
mailto: pbristow_at_[hidden]