note merlyn I prefer the easy-to-read idiom: <code> my @data = (... long list ...); while (my @chunk = splice @data, 0, 4) { # 4 items at a time ... process @chunk ... } </code> <p>-- <a href="http://www.stonehenge.com/merlyn/">Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker</a></p> 158356 158356