openFrameworks - Notes on Getting Started

The other day, I learned of the existence of openFrameworks. According to the openFrameworks website, openFramework is a "toolkit designed to assist the creative process by providing a simple and intuitive framework for experimentation." openFrameworks runs on multiple platforms (Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, iOS, and Android).

I am learning and work with openFrameworks for a few reasons. I would like to increase my knowledge of C++. I am hoping that the libraries that are included with openFrameworks will take some of the pain out of learning C++. My next reason for learning openFrameworks is gain experience outside of business programming. I make my living by writing code for businesses.

Steps

1.) Download the framework (v0.8.3) - http://openframeworks.cc/download/.
2.) Unzip the files. I choose to put the files at c:\openFrameworks.
3.) Create the first solution.
3a.) Run projectGenerator.exe
3b.) Change the value of Name field
3c.) Accept the default path. Older versions of the openFramework relied on relative paths to find libraries. I choose not to risk change the location for my first project.
3d.) Leave the Addon alone for now. I am looking forward to playing and experimenting in the near future.
3e.) Click 'Generate Project'. Watch the screen carefully. The process runs very quickly and it is easy to miss the done message.
4.) Open the project with Visual Studio 2012. I learned this the hard way. I was unsuccessful with building the project in VS2013. Additional research is needed to figure out why.
5.) Run the project. The first build takes a while to compile all the parts. Once it is done, you should see a gray window.

The next step is now to start working my way through the tutorials.