Gents, many thanks for all of the advice - this is just what I was looking for to help get me started.
I guess that I'm just being a bit lazy really...I could spend an eternity hunting the web for tutorials and information, or read some more of my book, but I guess it's much easier to ask experts like yourselves. I also know a handful of languages (can even do Commodore Basic :-), but I always try to start by comparing the language I'm learning to one I already know. Perl seems to be structured in a similar way to JavaScript, but obviously JS doesn't have this sort of file handling in it. Now knowing that I have to trap all of the errors myself, and a rough idea of how to do it, I should be able to progress a little further. Can I ask, what routes did you use to learn Perl. JS was pretty easy to pick up by looking at other peoples code, and the odd web tutorial, but it seems you have to know the bowls of Perl before you can get going? Am I being picky, or impatient, and where did that left sock go? Rob. -----Original Message----- From: Thomas R Wyant_III [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: 05 November 2003 19:50 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: RE: File Read Error Robert Atkinson wrote: > Remember, you're talking to someone who's used to programming in DCL, which > will almost always tell you when it encounters problems. Now I've begun using > this 'new' language Perl, I expect it to act similarly. When it doesn't, I > need to find out.. > - Why? > - How do I make it act correctly, i.e. trap errors? > - What other problems am I going to encounter, because Perl doesn't report errors? > These may seem simplistic or even stupid questions if your used to Perl, but > for a novice, these are the fundamentals for learning how a language works. > Until I know the 'gotchas', I cannot trust what I'm writing and the results I > get out. Actually, I have programmed in DCL for a long time, and one of my chief gripes is that it frequently does _not_ tell you when it encounters problems. This is not to differ with you, or to slam DCL. What it really tells you is my expectations. Before I programmed in (among other things) DCL, I programmed in (among other things), the RSX Indirect Command Language. This had "atomic" directives to query the user for a string, a number, or a boolean; the reply was checked for validity and the user was re-promoted until he or she got it right - all transparantly to the user. DCL has nothing like this, and the number of lines consumed by the VMSINSTAL procedure to mimic this behaviour is not to be believed. And VMS was supposed to be an improvement? *********************************************************************************** The Random House Group Ltd. Registered address 20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London SW1V 2SA http://www.randomhouse.co.uk Telephone +44 (0) 20 7840 8400. Any opinions expressed in email are those of the individual and not necessarily those of the company. This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and solely for the use of the intended recipient or entity to who they are addressed. It may contain material protected by attorney-client privilege. If you are not the intended recipient, or a person responsible for delivering to the intended recipient, be advised that you have received this email in error and that any use is strictly prohibited. Random House Group IT Department helpdesk +44 (0) 1206 255900. ***********************************************************************************
