Setting up Nvidia Apex SDK on Visual Studio 2010

APEX is a multi-platform, scalable dynamics framework. Rather than providing a low-level API that requires a physics programmer, APEX creates an environment where artists can create complex, high-level, dynamic systems without any programming. APEX is completely artist focused by providing the artist with familiar and easy to use authoring tools.
APEX consists of two major components:

• the authoring component, provides high-level authoring of dynamic systems through DCC plug-ins (3dsMax/Maya), standalone tools, or game engine plug-ins.
  
• the runtime component, consists of a modular SDK which includes the framework that supports all APEX modules and provides a render interface to allow minimal integration into game engines.

Here I'll show you how to setup the SDK so that you can start using Apex SDK in Visual Studio in your c++ programs.

Download following files from you Apex account -
1. Nvidia PhysX sdk installer (mostly named as PhysX_2.8.4.6_for_PC_Core.msi). If  you are using Apex  1.1 SDK, then you need to install PhysX 2.8.4 and not later version.
2. Then you need Apex SDK (mostly named as APEXSDK-1.1-Build112-PhysX_2.8.4-WIN-VC9.zip).
3. Latest Microsoft DirectX SDK which can be downloaded from here.

Install DirectX SDK, Nvidia PhysX and then Apex SDK. Now you need to add Nvidia PhysX installed location to your system path. To do this, go to System Properties->Advanced System Settings->Environment Variable. Click on New in the top list. Add the variable name NXPATH and variable value as <Location> of your physx sdk(For my case it was "C:\Program Files (x86)\NVIDIA Corporation\NVIDIA PhysX SDK\v2.8.4_win").


Now you are ready to open the visual studio sample projects given with ApexSDK.

1. Go to your apex installed location/samples/compiler\vc9WIN32-PhysX_2.8.4 or /samples/compiler\vc9WIN64-PhysX_2.8.4 folder. Open the Apex_Samples project. This project consists of 8 sub projects. 
2. Right click on the properties of SampleRenderer-MT. Go to C/C++->General->Additional Include Directories. Replace the directX include path with the one on your system. (For me it was C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft DirectX SDK (June 2010)\Include).
3. Similarly replace the directx include path in the properties of project "SamplePlatform-MT".

Now compile your projects and you are ready to go. Mostly the project names in the properties are different from the one which are built e.g. ApexHelloWorld sample builds with the name ApexHelloWorldDebug.exe So you'll have to change this name in properties so that you may debug them directly from your visual studio editor. The build location is in ApexSDK home location/bin.