if(length($val) > 100)
      {
        # For some reason we have to duplicate 
        # the contents of the string via a process
        # that detaches from the original variable
        # if the string is longer than 136 characters
        # (I don't know why)
        my $t = pack("c".length($val),
                         unpack("c".length($val),$val));
        $val = $t;
      }