my %data; while (my $line=<$INPUT_FILE_HANDLE>) { my ($rectype, $testID, $dimX, $dimY, $polynomial) = parse_input_line($line); my $key = "$rectype:$testID"; $data{$key} = { RecType => $rectype, TestID => $testID, DIM => [ $dimX, $dimY ], Polynomial => $polynomial, }; }