Coauthored by Larry Wall, the creator of Perl, this book is the authoritative guide to Perl version 5, the scripting utility now established as the programming tool of choice for the World Wide Web, UNIX system administration, and a vast range of other applications. Learn how to use this versatile cross-platform programming language to solve unique programming challenges. This heavily revised second edition of Programming Perl contains a full explanation of Perl version 5.003 features. It covers Perl language and syntax, functions, library modules, references, and object-oriented features. It also explores invocation options for Perl and the utilities that come with it, debugging, common mistakes, efficiency, programming style, distribution and installation of Perl, and much more. Reviewers have called this book splendid, definitive, and well worth the price.