use Text::Iconv. This is much more reliable under 5.6 than the various Unicode::* modules out there, although you have to patch it with s/sv_undef/PL_sv_undef/g, and ignore the test failures. (I've mailed the author on this and other issues). The other problem with the Map8 stuff is that the character set choices are case sensitive, which is a total pain in the ass when working with unknown sources of information.