(Shrug ...)   I simply think that everything which you choose to place within your <code>...</code> tags should be “complete.”   The already-confused Gentle Reader™ ought to be able to copy-and-paste exactly what you gave him, run it, and wind up with exactly the outcome that you refer to.   Both the strict and the warnings pragmas have a very-distinct and therefore very-important influence upon whether-or-not this actually occurs, since Perl, by-default, will DWIAABITYM = Do What I (As A Binary Idiot) Think You Mean   ;-)   Both of them also, by default, are not included.   Therefore, by all means, include them.   (I am, already, confused-as-hell ... therefore, please don’t leave me guessing ...)