Kickstarting CMake
If you’re developing software using C++ or C, you have probably heard about CMake before. Over the last 20 years, CMake has evolved into something that’s an industry standard when it comes to building C++ applications. But CMake is more than just a build system – it is a build system generator, which means it produces instructions for other build systems such as Makefile, Ninja, Visual Studio, QtCreator, Android Studio, and XCode. It does not stop at building software – CMake also includes features that support installing, packaging, and testing software.
As a de facto industry standard, CMake is a must-know technology for any C++ programmer.
In this chapter, you will get a high-level overview of what CMake is and learn about the necessary basics to build your first program. We will have a look at CMake’s build process and provide an overview of how to use the CMake language to configure build processes.
In this chapter...
