http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=996573


in reply to Compression in Golf: Part I

I just realized we can reduce my original packed 95-stroker:

map$c[$_*=.52,5.5-4.7*cos][8+7.4*sin]=($`%12^$_?o:x)&($'/+5^$ a.$_?o:v125),0..s//<>/e./:/;print"@$_\n"for@c
by two strokes:
map$c[$_*=.52,5.5-4.7*cos][8+7.4*sin]=($`%12^$_?o:x)&($'/5^$_ ?o:v125),0..s//<>/e./:/;print"@$_\n"for@c#```
As you can see from the table below, the "?" character, by pure fluke, is two before "A" in the ASCII table:

ordpacklenchr
6331?
6432@
653345A

So we can hijack pack's "?" length byte as part of our ternary expression! Note that we padded the source program with #``` at the end to keep its length at 45, the required multiple of four.