user
kiat
<span style="font-family: verdana; color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 12pt; background-color: #FF0000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px">HOW I GOT HERE</span><p>
Actually, I don't remember. I probably googled my way here. My very first post [id://90351] says I landed here on <span style="color: #0000FF;">Jun 22, 2001 at 01:48 GMT-8</span>. Ah, that was three years ago. Time does fly...<p>
<span style="font-family: verdana; color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 12pt; background-color: #FF0000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px">IN THE BEGINNING</span><p>
My first encounter with Perl was a CGI script I got from the Internet. Although I had done some Java prior to that, the Perl code looked scary. I thought I would never understand what was going on. But I did manage to use that script almost unchanged after some struggle.<p>
CGI was synonymous with Perl then, around 1999. I decided I had to learn perl somehow.<p>
I started with tiny programs to learn about perl's syntax and constructs, usually with a book by my side.<p>
Gradually, I experimented with writing scripts that did some real work — like reading a file and performing simple computations.<p>
I wrote horrible Perl code. I still do but it's not as bad now. I was fond of writing code from beginning to end without a single sub. Maybe I was too lazy, I don't know.<p>
Oh, I had code like this:
<code>
foreach $_ (@items) {
print "$_\n";
}
</code>
Fortunately, I don't have to maintain any of my old code because they aren't in use any more.<p>
<span style="font-family: verdana; color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 12pt; background-color: #FF0000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px">WHAT DO I USE PERL FOR</span><p>
Mainly for web programming. I started learning MySQL at the end of 2003. Since then, I have been using perl with MySQL to do dynamic websites.<p>
Before MySQL, I was using flat files for the database. I got quite paranoid after a while and asked the monks here about what they thought of flat files.<p>
I received very good advice but didn't make a switch immediately. The flat files worked just fine at that time. Also, I knew nothing about databases, much less to get Perl to work with one. So I was hesitant to use a proper database system.<p>
The crunch came when I helped a friend create a site that required the use of databases. I didn't enjoy reading those database books because they were mostly theoretical. I also read up on MySQL, which was more enjoyable because at least I could experiment with simple SQL statements and see the results.<p>
Sure, it wasn't easy for me but it was rewarding in the end when things finally worked — perl and MySQL for the web.<p>
<span style="font-family: verdana; color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 12pt; background-color: #FF0000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px">PERLMONKS</span><p>
Without this great site, my relationship with perl might not have lasted. I've not touched java for over two years but I'm still with perl after 4-5 years. It's the smell of the camel no doubt but this community certainly makes half the difference. I received lots of great help. I'm not afraid to dream with perl because I know no matter what problems I face, I can find solutions here.<p>
<p><span style="color: #800080;">A zillion thanks to all of you out there!</span></p>
<p>My
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