Chapter 19. Writing Your Own DLLs

Chapter 9 discussed how a C++/CLI class library is stored in a .dll file. Dynamic link libraries (DLLs) are also used extensively with native C++ applications. A complete discussion of DLLs in native C++ applications is outside the scope of a beginner's book, but they are important enough to justify including an introductory chapter on them. In this chapter, you will learn about:

• DLLs and how they work

• When you should consider implementing a DLL

• What varieties of DLL are possible and what they are used for

• How you can extend MFC using a DLL

• How to define what is accessible in a DLL

• How to access the contents of a DLL in your programs