How to use makefiles in Visual Studio?

Question

I heard a lot about makefiles and how they simplify the compilation process. I\'m using VS2008. Can somebody please suggest some online references or books where I can fin

Answer 1

To answer the specific questions...

I'm using VS2008. Can somebody please suggest some online references or books where I can find out more about how to deal with them?

This link will give you a good introduction into Makefiles by mapping it with Visual Studio.

Introduction to Makefiles for Visual Studio developers

I heard a lot about makefiles and how they simplify the compilation process.

Makefiles are powerful and flexible but may not be the best solution to simplify the process. Consider CMake which abstracts the build process well which is explained in this link.

CMake for Visual Studio Developers