Perl, the Practical Extraction and Reporting Language, has long been a critical tool for building dynamic Websites and automating various Internet-related tasks. Unfortunately its use has largely been limited to those working on Unix-based systems (where Perl originated) or serious hackers willing to go through the contortions necessary to run Unix-based software under MS Windows. With the release...

This article introduces Perl (practical extraction and report language), then covers four new developments, and concludes with a listing of Perl resources. Developments include: JPL (term derived from Java and .pl), a toolkit which combines Java and Perl; Perl for Win32 by ActiveState, which allows one to write and run Perl scripts on 32-bit Windows; PerlScript, a web scripting language; and...

O'Reilly & Associates publishers has announced that it will host the well known Perl Language Home Page, originally developed by Tom Christiansen. The Perl site has long provided one stop shopping for web developers who depend on the language to enhance sites. It contains software, resource, and training information, as well as a connection to the Comprehensive Perl Archive Network (CPAN)....

Created and maintained by Carlos Ramirez, this site aims to "provide a complete and up-to-date repository of documentation available to the Perl community," including bundled POD documentation as well as documentation of all modules available at the Comprehensive Perl Archive Network (CPAN). The site contains six main sections: a Perl overview, Modules, Distribution Documents, PODs, Executables,...

This page, part of publisher O'Reilly & Associates's Website devoted to the Perl language, contains a transcript of Larry Wall's address at the Perl Conference 3.0, which was held as part of the recent O'Reilly Open Source Convention in Monterey, California. In his address, Wall, the original author of the Perl programming language, provides a thought-provoking (and entertaining) mix of philosophy...