Boost is a collection of libraries for the C++ programming language that provides support for various tasks and structures, including linear algebra, pseudorandom number generation, multithreading, image processing, regular expressions, and unit testing.

Steps to include the C++ Boost library in Visual Studio

To include the Boost library [1] statically in Visual Studio, follow these steps [2]:

1. Downloading and Unzip Boost
   • Start by downloading the latest version from Boost.org
   • Unzip the downloaded file and place it as close to the root of the C: drive as possible (e.g., “C:...\boost_1_84_0”).
2. Ioen the Command Prompt
   • Open the Command Prompt (CMD) on your computer. I recommend using the “Developer Command Prompt for Visual Studio”
   • Navigate to the Boost directiory using the following command: “cd C:\codes\Toolbox\boost_1_84_0”
3. Run Bootstrap
   • Execute the “bootstrap” command.
   • Once bootstrap has completed, it will provide instructions for the next steps. For example, it may instruct you to run “.\b2”, do that.
   • This process may take some time to complete.
4. Note the paths provided
   • After the process finishes, it will specify two paths to include in your project:
   • Compiler Include Path: C:...\boost_1_84_0
   • Linker Include Path: C:...\boost_1_84_0\stage\lib
5. Create a C++ project in Visual Studio
   • Go to “properties” > “configuration properties”.
   • Under “C++/General”, add the compiler include path from step 4 into “Additional Include Directories”.
   • Under “Linker/General”, add the linker path to “Additional Library Directories”
6. Run Example Code
   • You should now be able to run the following example code in your project. This code takes a number from the user as input and returns the lambda number.

#include <boost/lambda/lambda.hpp>
#include <iostream>
#include <iterator>
#include <algorithm>

int main()
{
    using namespace boost::lambda;
    typedef std::istream_iterator<int> in;

    std::for_each(
        in(std::cin), in(), std::cout << (_1 * 3) << " ");
}

Output example:

7
21 9
27 21
63 33
99 104
312 310
930 2
6

References

[1] Boost library. Link to reference

[2] IQ95 The Homo Siliconiens. Youtube. Link to reference