You can either use the precompiled libraries from the [SDL](https://www.libsdl.org/download.php) web site, or you can build SDL
yourself.
### Building SDL
0. To build SDL, your machine must, at a minimum, have the DirectX9.0c SDK installed. It may or may not be retrievable from
the [Microsoft](https://www.microsoft.com) website, so you might need to locate it [online](https://duckduckgo.com/?q=directx9.0c+sdk+download&t=h_&ia=web).
_Editor's note: I've been able to successfully build SDL using Visual Studio 2019 **without** the DX9.0c SDK_
1. Open the Visual Studio solution file at `./VisualC/SDL.sln`.
2. Your IDE will likely prompt you to upgrade this solution file to whatever later version of the IDE you're using. In the `Retarget Projects` dialog,
all of the affected project files should be checked allowing you to use the latest `Windows SDK Version` you have installed, along with
the `Platform Toolset`.
If you choose *NOT* to upgrade to use the latest `Windows SDK Version` or `Platform Toolset`, then you'll need the `Visual Studio 2010 Platform Toolset`.
3. Build the `.dll` and `.lib` files by right clicking on each project in turn (Projects are listed in the _Workspace_
panel in the _FileView_ tab), and selecting `Build`.
You may get a few warnings, but you should not get any errors.
Later, we will refer to the following `.lib` and `.dll` files that have just been generated:
-`./VisualC/Win32/Debug/SDL2.dll` or `./VisualC/Win32/Release/SDL2.dll`
-`./VisualC/Win32/Debug/SDL2.lib` or `./VisualC/Win32/Release/SDL2.lib`
-`./VisualC/Win32/Debug/SDL2main.lib` or `./VisualC/Win32/Release/SDL2main.lib`
_Note for the `x64` versions, just replace `Win32` in the path with `x64`_
### Creating a Project with SDL
- Create a project as a `Win32 Application`.
- Create a C++ file for your project.
- Set the C runtime to `Multi-threaded DLL` in the menu: