Over the years, Perl has grown from an elegant scripting tool into a mature and full-featured language for application development, boasting object-oriented programming, a flexible threading model, built-in support for Unicode, and a thriving community. Perl is available on almost every platform and offers a comprehensive library of modules, so there is no task too big or small for it to tackle.

I wrote Pro Perl to help you master the key features and complexities of this powerful language. Aimed at intermediate and advanced developers alike, the material assumes some general knowledge of programming concepts but not necessarily prior Perl experience. However, given the expansive coverage of core language topics, Pro Perl also serves as a valuable guide to seasoned Perl programmers seeking to push their proficiency to the next level.

Using a depth-first approach to aid learning of advanced concepts, I'll guide you through detailed examinations of many key topics, including regular expressions, networking, modules and packages, object-oriented development, and much more. Pro Perl seeks to provide developers with not only the answers to their programming questions, but also advanced ideas and related concepts that expand their understanding of Perl as a language. This edition of Pro Perl offers updated and expanded content, and improved organization by combining material from previous editions of Professional Perl Programming and Professional Perl Development.

• About the Author
• About the Technical Reviewer Introduction
• Introducing Perl
• Basic Concepts
• Scalars: Integers, Floating-Point Numbers, and Strings
• Operators
• Arrays, Hashes, References, and Typeglobs
• Structure, Flow, and Control
• Subroutines
• Scope and Visibility
• Using Modules
• Inside Modules and Packages
• Interpolation and Regular Expressions
• Input and Output with Filehandles
• Files and Directories
• Command Line and Shell Interaction
• Terminal Input and Output
• Warnings and Errors
• Debugging, Testing, and Profiling
• Text Processing, Documentation, and Reports
• Object-Oriented Perl
• Extending and Embedding Perl
• Processes, Signals, and Threads
• Networking
• Unicode, Locale, and Internationalization
• Index