Welcome to Perl and PerlMonks!

I much prefer to do my own research. Asking questions, like here, is a last resort.

I feel the same, but there's also no need to be worried about posting here.

I was told by some folks at mersenneforum.org that membership here can be tough.

Well, sometimes, but in my experience only when people are rude, spread bad information, and/or treat PM as a code writing service instead of a place to learn Perl. If you show your code (SSCCE), your thought process, and that you're learning from the replies you get, then as a general rule you should get a lot of help :-) Have a look at PerlMonks for the Absolute Beginner and How do I post a question effectively?, and feel free to ask here anytime!

Some things to get started:

• perlintro
• So what is your Perl book "Trilogy" anyway?
• Moving from scripting to programming

My personal book recommendations for a programmer new to Perl would be: Learning Perl (optional depending on programming skill level), Modern Perl, and of course The Camel.

Membership here can be.. fun, as fun can be sometimes real life. One of the mottos is Clear questions and runnable code get the best and fastest answer (as I read it in the meanwhile in the top left corner of the page) and, as you can imagine if you passed the age of reason, is a good behaviour.

Many times even poor questions are answered kindly, in the hope the newcomer will be better in the future. Sometime happens. Sometimes. See a very recent example.

About searching/asking: structured and readable questions are better and also to do some research on your own on the site is welcome and often lead directly to a solution. This is incredible: Perl evolved a lot in the last 20 years of perlmonks life, but code from such remote era is still valid most of the times. But many things happened, many useful modules have been uploaded to CPAN and many new monks signed here, so sometimes is also good to reask a question possibly specifying what already found.

L*

"I was told by some folks at mersenneforum.org that membership here can be tough"

At a quick glance I can see one person suggest that to you, not exactly a representative sample set. See Tutorials->Understanding and Using PerlMonks->PerlMonks for the Absolute Beginner. Where should I post X? and other links are displayed each time you post (this section of the site is for perl questions).

Yeah, I don't know if 'they get pretty angry if it is something you could have found through a search or by "learning by doing"' was ever true, but it certainly isn't nowadays.

Way back in the day, the chatterbox was usually very active (and more difficult to keep up with using the 'default' client), on occasion someone asking a question would have been pointed to Super Search or SoPW, in much the same way as they are now but I guess it could seem dismissive to some given the fluidity of the various conversations. On other occasions people would react badly to being asked 'What have you tried and how did it fail?'. The same is true today, perception differs. The CB is far less active now, and for those who aren't used to it conversations are easier to follow. Also What Made the Perl Community Mean Spirited?.

…membership here can be tough…

Variations have already been mentioned but I want to add that membership here is a pretty pure GIGO situation. If one posts polite, honest, undemanding questions and requests, one tends to get what might be the best free tech help and discussion available anywhere in the world. Happy New Year and new language to you!

Everyone's welcome. The best questions are the ones that are unambiguously asked, with some sample code reduced to a self-contained snippet that can be run, that demonstrates the issue and nothing more. Sample input and expected output are useful too. It helps if one takes the time to read perlintro, and later perlsyn, perlsub, and the various POD documents that end in 'tut' (tutorial).

An old programmer will have no trouble picking up a new tool. We do enjoy helping.

Greetings! I'm almost as old as you, and my first programming job was a work term in Fall of '77. Not yet retired, sigh.

This place is like any other on the Internet -- you get what you give. If you dig into the subject, do as much research as you can and are still stumped, ask your question, and show your work. Many folks will be glad to help you out. Ask a vague, poorly researched question, and things won't go as well. :)

I've been using Perl for a little over 20 years, and I have a pretty good handle on the language, but I sure don't know everything about it, nor do I know every last CPAN module. There's so much stuff out there.

As Larry would say, "Have the appropriate amount of fun!"

Feel free to ask your questions AND research it yourself. You might get different answers :)

I would love to see some mathematical challenges / puzzles to be solved using Perl. Providing some will make your membership softer :)

For example, at this moment, I am looking for number crunching challenges which can utilise the *G*PU.

bw, bliako (hardly a tough monk)

"...I am retired and 64 years old."

Welcome to the club! Best regards, Karl

I've been lurking here for nearly 20 years, and improving my Perl in the bargain.

When I have a chance, I spend some time here reading answers to other questions, and sometimes asking my own. When I do ask my own questions, I often get good answers within the hour, though some good replies come in the next few days as well.

I would suggest not being shy about asking or contributing here. Those who respect others' time and points of view are well received. (Those who abuse the same are generally treated patiently at first, but sometimes we collectively run out of tolerance.)

Like an astrologer, you seem right if you're maximally vague.

Do you have any recommendations for a good recent book as of today?

(Not holding my breath.)

Learning Perl by O'Reilly seemed like a good book the last time I looked at it, but it's been quite a while. These days I have Programming Perl (aka The Camel), 4th Edition, also from O'Reilly. It's the complete reference book on Perl, although on-line stuff is more up to date.

Alex / talexb / Toronto

Thanks PJ. We owe you so much. Groklaw -- RIP -- 2003 to 2013.