> On Mon, Jul 27, 2009 at 09:49, Bryan Harris<bryansli...@gmail.com> wrote: > snip >>> Yes because $_ is a special global variable. This effect is called >>> "action at a distance" which is why it is better to use named lexically >>> scoped variables instead of $_. >> >> I have the Perl Bookshelf on CD (and perldoc, obviously) -- where can I read >> more about this? > snip > > Take a look at [Perl Best Practices][1] by Damian Conway (chapter 5 > covers variable use), but be warned, not all of the advice in PBP is > still considered correct. Another good resource is [Perl::Critic][2], > but, again, you do not have to follow everything it tells you. You > will also want to read about the [my][3], [our][4], and [local][5] > functions and anywhere in the docs where the talk about lexical (my) > or dynamic (our & local) scope, including, but not limited to the > [Private Variables via my()][6] and [Temporary Values via local()][7] > sections of perlsub.
Wow, I wish I'd read this email before sending that last one. The perldoc.perl.org site has gotten a tremendous upgrade, it's beautiful now. It also explains the whole local($_) thing, though it doesn't really explain "why", just "that". > snip >> Why is perl on OS X still at 5.8.8? It's free, right? why wouldn't Apple >> include the latest one? (I know this isn't an Apple list, just wondering if >> anyone knows.) > snip > > Because Apple is being conservative (and rightly so, 5.10.0 has a lot > of bugs). The next release (Snow Leopard) will have 5.10, and you can > always compile it yourself or use [ActiveState's version][8]. In > fact, there are those in the community who claim you should never > trust a vendor supplied version of Perl and should always compile your > own copy. That feels like a really bad idea for me, though, since I'm writing scripts where my primary goal is portability. Having my own compiled copy seems like a recipe for disaster if I need others to be able to run it just like I do. > [1] : http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596001735/ > [2] : http://search.cpan.org/dist/Perl-Critic/lib/Perl/Critic.pm > [3] : http://perldoc.perl.org/functions/my.html > [4] : http://perldoc.perl.org/functions/our.html > [5] : http://perldoc.perl.org/functions/local.html > [6] : http://perldoc.perl.org/perlsub.html#Private-Variables-via-my%28%29 > [7] : http://perldoc.perl.org/perlsub.html#Temporary-Values-via-local() > [8] : http://www.activestate.com/activeperl/ Terrific list, thanks for the links. =) - Bryan -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: beginners-unsubscr...@perl.org For additional commands, e-mail: beginners-h...@perl.org http://learn.perl.org/
