Rating:  - An Encyclopedic Reference -- or a Baptism by Fire
"Programming Perl" simply has everything about Perl you will ever need to know. If it's in Perl, it's in this book, as far as I can tell. Finding what you're looking for will be another matter. The organization of this volume leaves much to be desired. But the index is pretty helpful so searching through this book is a little like looking for a needle in a hay stack, but with a magnet in hand.
But don't let the name fool you: This book is not the place to learn Perl, as I found the hard way. It just simply assumes too much knowledge on the part of the reader, and has a horrendous paucity of example code. If Perl is something you are going to explore and use to a great extent, "Programming Perl" will eventually become indispensible to you, I am certain. But if you are new to the language: DANGER! DANGER! ABUNAI!
All things considered, I would give it four stars -- five for its breadth of coverage minus one for its poor organization. But the book's title implies that it is meant as an introduction to Perl, but an introduction it just ain't! The authors say as much themselves in their introduction, but I think the unsuspecting novice deserves to see it on the front cover too. So I am taking away one more star for a total of three.
"Programming Perl": a great reference, a horrid learning tool.
Rating:  - The ultimate reference book for programming PERL
At the title says, this book is about Programming Perl. For those who are looking for a tutorial on Perl, this is not the book to start with, you should try "Learning Perl", or one of the many other starter books for Perl. I use this book as my standard reference to the Perl language, and it has never let me down.
Rating: - Another perl book, in this case, authored by the inventive brain of perl
This is a book very easy to read, intended for perl novices. You can learn a lot of productive stuff if you have:
- time
- expectations
and :
- a remunerated job
- two non alcoholized neurons
But if you feel that there is nothing in this world that really entitles learning it, because your a genious or similar, then congratulate yourselft and welcome to my world. This kind of intellectual stuff is not the path. Rationale is radically obsolete.
I know that many people here short term capable thinks that you need just another review. Do not thrust them. Be yourself. Be complex (if you want).
Rating: - Recommended for any Perl bookshelf
I bought this book in 1998 when I was first learning Perl. Five years later as I write this review, this book doesn't cease to be the first place I turn for help. The first part of the book does a great job of explaining Perl concepts, especially pattern matching and regular expressions (which have a book of their own). The next part, which is what I now primarily use, is the function reference. I admit I have only taken advantage of part of the book's usefulness, since I haven't done much with Perl modules, a reference to which is also included.
Plus, the authors inject just enough light humor to make your programming project bearable. :) If I didn't find my current copy so helpful already, I'd buy a newer edition.
Rating:  - Not a good reference book
I find this to be a very frustrating and time-consuming book to use as a reference. The main complaint I have about this book is its astonishing lack of examples. No user wants to try to extract syntax from paragraphs of commentary. If you have the time and want to sit down and learn the "theory" behind Perl, then maybe this is a good book for you. Otherwise, look for a book with examples rather than expository.
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