Forcing array context

[Binish A R]

How can I force array context ... like # echo hello: world | perl -lne '$aref = split(/:/, $_); print $aref' but thatz giving the length of the array ... I want $aref to be a reference ... How is that possible ?? A workaround is to use the following # echo hello: world | perl -lne '@ar = split(/:/, $_); $aref = [EMAIL PROTECTED];' But I'm not satisfied with that as I've to use an extra variable @ar ... :( Any help ... --