PointCloudLibrary / PointCloudLibrary/pcl

[Proposal] New tutorial for "How to install PCL for windows x64 Visual Studio 2019"

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effort: low good first issue help wanted kind: proposal kind: todo module: docs
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Description

Hi,

We went through a painful process of PCL installation.
In order to save someone else time, I would strongly recommend to include these steps in PCL github ReadMe file.


TRYING TO INSTALL PCL FOR DAYS, WEEKS, MONTHS AND YEARS FOR WINDOWS X64 VISUAL STUDIO 2019?
READ CAREFULLY STEPS BELOW:

  1. Download All-in-One Installer
    https://github.com/PointCloudLibrary/pcl/releases
    Including OpenNi

We tried VCPKG packages, but it did not work because of Eigen, and the only way was to install via all in one installer.


  1. Set Environmental Variables and restart computer.
    We tried on two separate laptops and this was the full list needed. Because in one pc some references were ok and the other pc required more references.
    To find environmental variables in windows bottom left, type Environmental Variables.
name: PCL_ROOT
value: C:\Program Files\PCL 1.11.1

name:Path
C:\Program Files\OpenNI2
C:\Program Files\PCL 1.11.1\bin
C:\Program Files\PCL 1.11.1\3rdParty
C:\Program Files\PCL 1.11.1\3rdParty\VTK\bin
C:\Program Files\OpenNI2\Tools

name: OPENNI2_INCLUDE64
value: C:\Program Files\OpenNI2\Include\

name: OPENNI2_LIB64
value: C:\Program Files\OpenNI2\Lib\

name: OPENNI2_REDIST64
value: C:\Program Files\OpenNI2\Redist\

image


  1. Create Folder in whatever place (I used C:/lib/PCLTest drive) and add CMakeLists.txt and .cpp file following the online tutorial instructions: https://pcl.readthedocs.io/projects/tutorials/en/latest/cloud_viewer.html#cloud-viewer.
    Add text from this website into CMakeLists.txt and then add cloud_viewer.cpp with the code inside.

image

image


  1. In CMake (https://cmake.org/download/) reference the folder where those two files are and reference empty build file.
    Press configure and build.
    If the cpp file is named main.cpp it wont work because it must be cloud_viewer.cpp .
    Also do not forget to add code from the tutorial website (pointclouds.org) else the code wont build.
    Press Configure and then Generate. Do not forget to set compiler to x64 bit. Compile will create project file in build directory.
    image
    In my case I had some warning messages but it worked:
    image

  1. Open Visual Studio project and set to project to cloud_viewer.
    Build it.
    image

  1. Copy PointCloud.pcd file to project main folder, the pcd (pointcloud data sets) are in your program files, use search engine Everything to find these files faster:
    C:\DEV\PCL1_11_1_Test03\build
    image

  1. Change the name of the .pcd file in the cloud_viewer.cpp file, build it again and run it in debug mode.

image


PCL IS AWESOME

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start with the repository README and the cloud_viewer tutorial linked in the issue, then review the supplied CMakeLists.txt and cloud_viewer.cpp steps. Check the Windows x64 Visual Studio 2019 installation process before adapting the instructions. Done means the tested setup guidance is added to the appropriate documentation.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
cmake, cpp
Domain
build-system, documentation
Issue type
Documentation
Difficulty
3/5
Estimated time
1-2 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
35/100

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