In my mind, the perl docs are extremekly useful- after you learn how to use them. I am going thru this also, it is the same as when I first started learning unix. Yes the answer is in the man pages, but learning how to use them is almost as difficult as learning the language itself. I used to post to usenet and would ask people to include chapter and verse in all RTFM replies. It at least gave a target on where to look for an answer. I think the biggest problem/feature is as new people learning the language we don't know how to use them. Perhaps, someone should try to write a tutorial on using the perldocs :-) At this point, I use the O'reilly cd bookshelf as well as the super search here. The super search here will usually get me started on the right road to finding something similar I can use. If that doesn't work, check merlyn's site, he has written columns on almost everything I have been looking for so far! %^)