my $myfile = "BigOldFile.psv"; ## pipe-separated values :)

open(MYFILE, $myfile) or die "Could not open $myfile: $!\n";

my @lines = [];

while(<MYFILE>) {
  chomp;
  push @lines, [split(/\|/, $_, -1)];
}

## This will show you the format:

my $line=1;
for (@lines) {
  print "Line $line: $_\n";
  for (@$_) {
    print "*$_*\n"; ## Stars are to demonstrate null values
  }
  $line++;
}