X-Git-Url: http://git.shadowcat.co.uk/gitweb/gitweb.cgi?a=blobdiff_plain;f=pod%2Fperlglossary.pod;h=b27444023c13fc2d910a06dae4905cd92c525489;hb=64446524dbda53cb526fa2caf0e389033c91f314;hp=e6985c6714ba68348df544c3c87671c93aab7762;hpb=5bbd0522c4c5905125a88093d72f772779b14682;p=p5sagit%2Fp5-mst-13.2.git
diff --git a/pod/perlglossary.pod b/pod/perlglossary.pod
index e6985c6..b274440 100644
--- a/pod/perlglossary.pod
+++ b/pod/perlglossary.pod
@@ -15,22 +15,22 @@ L, and Wikipedia L.
=item accessor methods
-A C used to indirectly inspect or update an C used to indirectly inspect or update an L's
+state (its L).
=item actual arguments
-The Cs that you supply to a C
-or C when you call it. For instance, when you call
+The L that you supply to a L
+or L when you call it. For instance, when you call
C, the string C<"puff"> is the actual argument. See
-also C and C.
+also L and L.
=item address operator
Some languages work directly with the memory addresses of values, but
this can be like playing with fire. Perl provides a set of asbestos
gloves for handling all memory management. The closest to an address
-operator in Perl is the backslash operator, but it gives you a C, which is much safer than a memory address.
=item algorithm
@@ -45,10 +45,10 @@ used the original name instead of the nickname. Temporary aliases are
implicitly created in the loop variable for C loops, in the
C<$_> variable for L. When the last
hard reference goes away, the anonymous referent is destroyed without
pity.
=item architecture
-The kind of compluter you're working on, where one "kind" of computer
+The kind of computer you're working on, where one "kind" of computer
means all those computers sharing a compatible machine language.
Since Perl programs are (typically) simple text files, not executable
images, a Perl program is much less sensitive to the architecture it's
running on than programs in other languages, such as C, that are
-compiled into machine code. See also C and C and L.
=item argument
A piece of data supplied to a L,
-C, C, or C to tell it what it's
+L, L, or L to tell it what it's
supposed to do. Also called a "parameter".
=item ARGV
-The name of the array containing the C C from the
-command line. If you use the empty CE> operator, C is
-the name of both the C used to traverse the arguments and
-the C containing the name of the current input file.
+The name of the array containing the L L from the
+command line. If you use the empty C<< EE >> operator, L is
+the name of both the L used to traverse the arguments and
+the L containing the name of the current input file.
=item arithmetical operator
-A C such as C<+> or C> that tells Perl to do the arithmetic
+A L such as C<+> or C> that tells Perl to do the arithmetic
you were supposed to learn in grade school.
=item array
-An ordered sequence of Cs, stored such that you can
-easily access any of the values using an integer C
-that specifies the value's C in the sequence.
+An ordered sequence of L, stored such that you can
+easily access any of the values using an integer L
+that specifies the value's L in the sequence.
=item array context
An archaic expression for what is more correctly referred to as
-C.
+L.
=item ASCII
@@ -114,34 +114,34 @@ The American Standard Code for Information Interchange (a 7-bit
character set adequate only for poorly representing English text).
Often used loosely to describe the lowest 128 values of the various
ISO-8859-X character sets, a bunch of mutually incompatible 8-bit
-codes best described as half ASCII. See also C.
+codes best described as half ASCII. See also L.
=item assertion
-A component of a C that must be true for the
+A component of a L that must be true for the
pattern to match but does not necessarily match any characters itself.
-Often used specifically to mean a C assertion.
+Often used specifically to mean a L assertion.
=item assignment
-An C whose assigned mission in life is to change the value
-of a C.
+An L whose assigned mission in life is to change the value
+of a L.
=item assignment operator
-Either a regular C, or a compound C composed
+Either a regular L, or a compound L composed
of an ordinary assignment and some other operator, that changes the
value of a variable in place, that is, relative to its old value. For
example, C<$a += 2> adds C<2> to C<$a>.
=item associative array
-See C. Please.
+See L. Please.
=item associativity
-Determines whether you do the left C first or the right
-C first when you have "A C B C C" and
+Determines whether you do the left L first or the right
+L first when you have "A L B L C" and
the two operators are of the same precedence. Operators like C<+> are
left associative, while operators like C<**> are right associative.
See L for a list of operators and their associativity.
@@ -154,10 +154,10 @@ asynchronous event is one you didn't know when to expect.
=item atom
-A C component potentially matching a
-C containing one or more characters and treated as an
-indivisible syntactic unit by any following C. (Contrast
-with an C that matches something of C and may
+A L component potentially matching a
+L containing one or more characters and treated as an
+indivisible syntactic unit by any following L. (Contrast
+with an L that matches something of L and may
not be quantified.)
=item atomic operation
@@ -169,42 +169,43 @@ can't be interrupted, not one forbidden in a nuclear-free zone.
=item attribute
-A new feature that allows the declaration of Cs
-and Cs with modifiers as in C. Also, another name for an C of an
-C of an
+L.
=item autogeneration
-A feature of C of C, such as a WebCruncher object. See
L.
=item block
-What a C does when it has to wait for something: "My process
+What a L does when it has to wait for something: "My process
blocked waiting for the disk." As an unrelated noun, it refers to a
-large chunk of data, of a size that the C likes to
+large chunk of data, of a size that the L likes to
deal with (normally a power of two such as 512 or 8192). Typically
refers to a chunk of data that's coming from or going to a disk file.
=item BLOCK
A syntactic construct consisting of a sequence of Perl
-Cs that is delimited by braces. The C and
-C statements are defined in terms of Cs, for instance.
+L that is delimited by braces. The C and
+C statements are defined in terms of L, for instance.
Sometimes we also say "block" to mean a lexical scope; that is, a
-sequence of statements that act like a C, such as within an
+sequence of statements that act like a L, such as within an
L or a file, even though the statements aren't
delimited by braces.
=item block buffering
-A method of making input and output efficient by passing one C
+A method of making input and output efficient by passing one L
at a time. By default, Perl does block buffering to disk files. See
-C and C.
+L and L.
=item Boolean
-A value that is either C or C.
+A value that is either L or L.
=item Boolean context
-A special kind of C used in conditionals to decide
-whether the C returned by an expression is C or
-C. Does not evaluate as either a string or a number. See
-C.
+A special kind of L used in conditionals to decide
+whether the L returned by an expression is L or
+L. Does not evaluate as either a string or a number. See
+L.
=item breakpoint
@@ -358,7 +359,7 @@ is wrong yet.
=item broadcast
-To send a C to multiple destinations simultaneously.
+To send a L to multiple destinations simultaneously.
=item BSD
@@ -370,40 +371,41 @@ useful. (Or, at least, more fun.) The full chemical name is
=item bucket
-A location in a C containing (potentially) multiple
+A location in a L containing (potentially) multiple
entries whose keys "hash" to the same hash value according to its hash
function. (As internal policy, you don't have to worry about it,
unless you're into internals, or policy.)
=item buffer
-A temporary holding location for data. With C, the
-data is passed on to its destination whenever the buffer is full.
-With C, it's passed on whenever a complete line is
-received. With C, it's passed every time you do a
-L command (or equivalent). If your output is
+A temporary holding location for data. L means that the data is passed on to its destination
+whenever the buffer is full. L means
+that it's passed on whenever a complete line is received. L means that it's passed every time you do
+a L command (or equivalent). If your output is
unbuffered, the system processes it one byte at a time without the use
of a holding area. This can be rather inefficient.
=item built-in
-A C that is predefined in the language. Even when hidden
-by C, you can always get at a built-in function by
+A L that is predefined in the language. Even when hidden
+by L, you can always get at a built-in function by
L its name with the C pseudo-package.
=item bundle
-A group of related modules on C. (Also, sometimes refers to a
-group of command-line switches grouped into one C.)
+A group of related modules on L. (Also, sometimes refers to a
+group of command-line switches grouped into one L.)
=item byte
-A piece of data worth eight Cs in most places.
+A piece of data worth eight L in most places.
=item bytecode
A pidgin-like language spoken among 'droids when they don't wish to
-reveal their orientation (see C). Named after some similar
+reveal their orientation (see L). Named after some similar
languages spoken (for similar reasons) between compilers and
interpreters in the late 20th century. These languages are
characterized by representing everything as a
@@ -417,8 +419,8 @@ non-architecture-dependent sequence of bytes.
=item C
-A language beloved by many for its inside-out C definitions,
-inscrutable C rules, and heavy C of the
+A language beloved by many for its inside-out L definitions,
+inscrutable L rules, and heavy L of the
function-call mechanism. (Well, actually, people first switched to C
because they found lowercase identifiers easier to read than upper.)
Perl is written in C, so it's not surprising that Perl borrowed a few
@@ -433,23 +435,23 @@ definitions. Also known as I(1).
=item call by reference
-An C-passing mechanism in which the C
-refer directly to the C, and the C can
+An L-passing mechanism in which the L
+refer directly to the L, and the L can
change the actual arguments by changing the formal arguments. That
-is, the formal argument is an C for the actual argument. See
-also C.
+is, the formal argument is an L for the actual argument. See
+also L.
=item call by value
-An C-passing mechanism in which the C
-refer to a copy of the C, and the C
+An L-passing mechanism in which the L
+refer to a copy of the L, and the L
cannot change the actual arguments by changing the formal arguments.
-See also C.
+See also L.
=item callback
-A C that you register with some other part of your program
-in the hope that the other part of your program will C your
+A L that you register with some other part of your program
+in the hope that the other part of your program will L your
handler when some event of interest transpires.
=item canonical
@@ -458,9 +460,9 @@ Reduced to a standard form to facilitate comparison.
=item capturing
-The use of parentheses around a C in a C to store the matched C as a C.
-(Captured strings are also returned as a list in C.)
+The use of parentheses around a L in a L to store the matched L as a L.
+(Captured strings are also returned as a list in L.)
=item character
@@ -474,108 +476,108 @@ for the most part.
=item character class
-A square-bracketed list of characters used in a C
+A square-bracketed list of characters used in a L
to indicate that any character of the set may occur at a given point.
Loosely, any predefined set of characters so used.
=item character property
-A predefined C matchable by the C<\p>
-C. Many standard properties are defined for C.
+A predefined L matchable by the C<\p>
+L. Many standard properties are defined for L.
=item circumfix operator
-An C that surrounds its C, like the angle
+An L that surrounds its L, like the angle
operator, or parentheses, or a hug.
=item class
-A user-defined C, implemented in Perl via a C that
-provides (either directly or by inheritance) Cs (that
-is, Cs) to handle Cs of
-the class (its Cs). See also C.
+A user-defined L, implemented in Perl via a L that
+provides (either directly or by inheritance) L (that
+is, L) to handle L of
+the class (its L). See also L.
=item class method
-A C whose C is a C name, not an
-C reference. A method associated with the class as a whole.
+A L whose L is a L name, not an
+L reference. A method associated with the class as a whole.
=item client
-In networking, a C that initiates contact with a C
+In networking, a L that initiates contact with a L
process in order to exchange data and perhaps receive a service.
=item cloister
-A C used to restrict the scope of a C used to restrict the scope of a L.
=item closure
-An C subroutine that, when a reference to it is generated
+An L subroutine that, when a reference to it is generated
at run time, keeps track of the identities of externally visible
-Cs even after those lexical
-variables have supposedly gone out of C. They're called
+L even after those lexical
+variables have supposedly gone out of L. They're called
"closures" because this sort of behavior gives mathematicians a sense
of closure.
=item cluster
-A parenthesized C used to group parts of a C into a single C.
+A parenthesized L used to group parts of a L into a single L.
=item CODE
The word returned by the L function when you apply
-it to a reference to a subroutine. See also C.
+it to a reference to a subroutine. See also L.
=item code generator
A system that writes code for you in a low-level language, such as
-code to implement the backend of a compiler. See C.
=item code subpattern
-A C subpattern whose real purpose is to execute
+A L subpattern whose real purpose is to execute
some Perl code, for example, the C<(?{...})> and C<(??{...})>
subpatterns.
=item collating sequence
-The order into which Cs sort. This is used by
-C comparison routines to decide, for example, where in this
+The order into which L sort. This is used by
+L comparison routines to decide, for example, where in this
glossary to put "collating sequence".
=item command
-In C programming, the syntactic combination of a program name
+In L programming, the syntactic combination of a program name
and its arguments. More loosely, anything you type to a shell (a
command interpreter) that starts it doing something. Even more
-loosely, a Perl C, which might start with a C, which might start with a L and
typically ends with a semicolon.
=item command buffering
A mechanism in Perl that lets you store up the output of each Perl
-C and then flush it out as a single request to the
-C. It's enabled by setting the C<$|>
+L and then flush it out as a single request to the
+L. It's enabled by setting the C<$|>
(C<$AUTOFLUSH>) variable to a true value. It's used when you don't
want data sitting around not going where it's supposed to, which may
-happen because the default on a C or C is to use
-C.
+happen because the default on a L or L is to use
+L.
=item command name
The name of the program currently executing, as typed on the command
-line. In C, the C name is passed to the program as the
+line. In C, the L name is passed to the program as the
first command-line argument. In Perl, it comes in separately as
C<$0>.
=item command-line arguments
-The Cs you supply along with a program name when you
-tell a C to execute a C. These values are passed to
+The L you supply along with a program name when you
+tell a L to execute a L. These values are passed to
a Perl program through C<@ARGV>.
=item comment
@@ -586,14 +588,14 @@ the line.
=item compilation unit
-The C (or C, in the case of L)
+The L (or L, in the case of L)
that is currently being compiled.
=item compile phase
Any time before Perl starts running your main program. See also
-C. Compile phase is mostly spent in C, but
-may also be spent in C when C blocks,
+L. Compile phase is mostly spent in L, but
+may also be spent in L when C blocks,
L pair, like one entry in a
+L.
=item EOF
End of File. Sometimes used metaphorically as the terminating string
-of a C.
+of a L.
=item errno
-The error number returned by a C when it fails. Perl refers
+The error number returned by a L when it fails. Perl refers
to the error by the name C<$!> (or C<$OS_ERROR> if you use the English
module).
=item error
-See C or C.
+See L or L.
=item escape sequence
-See C.
+See L.
=item exception
-A fancy term for an error. See C.
+A fancy term for an error. See L.
=item exception handling
@@ -969,21 +972,21 @@ mechanism in Perl is the L operator.
=item exec
-To throw away the current C's program and replace it with
+To throw away the current L's program and replace it with
another without exiting the process or relinquishing any resources
held (apart from the old memory image).
=item executable file
-A C that is specially marked to tell the C
+A L that is specially marked to tell the L
that it's okay to run this file as a program. Usually shortened to
"executable".
=item execute
-To run a L or C. (Has nothing
+To run a L or L. (Has nothing
to do with the L built-in, unless you're trying to
-run a C.)
+run a L.)
=item execute bit
@@ -994,17 +997,17 @@ collectively, or not at all.
=item exit status
-See C.
+See L.
=item export
-To make symbols from a C available for C by other modules.
+To make symbols from a L available for L by other modules.
=item expression
-Anything you can legally say in a spot where a C is required.
-Typically composed of Cs, Cs,
-Cs, Cs, and C
+Anything you can legally say in a spot where a L is required.
+Typically composed of L, L,
+L, L, and L
calls, not necessarily in that order.
=item extension
@@ -1033,8 +1036,8 @@ standard with Perl).
=item fatal error
-An uncaught C, which causes termination of the C
-after printing a message on your C stream. Errors
+An uncaught L, which causes termination of the L
+after printing a message on your L stream. Errors
that happen inside an L are not fatal. Instead,
the L terminates after placing the exception
message in the C<$@> (C<$EVAL_ERROR>) variable. You can try to
@@ -1046,41 +1049,41 @@ L becomes a fatal error.
=item field
A single piece of numeric or string data that is part of a longer
-C, C, or C. Variable-width fields are
-usually split up by Cs (so use
-L to extract the fields), while fixed-width
-fields are usually at fixed positions (so use
-L). "fields" are also called Cs.
+L, L, or L. Variable-width fields are usually
+split up by L (so use L to
+extract the fields), while fixed-width fields are usually at fixed
+positions (so use L). L are also known as fields.
=item FIFO
-First In, First Out. See also C. Also, a nickname for a
-C.
+First In, First Out. See also L. Also, a nickname for a
+L.
=item file
-A named collection of data, usually stored on disk in a C
-in a C. Roughly like a document, if you're into office
+A named collection of data, usually stored on disk in a L
+in a L. Roughly like a document, if you're into office
metaphors. In modern filesystems, you can actually give a file more
than one name. Some files have special properties, like directories
and devices.
=item file descriptor
-The little number the C uses to keep track of which
-opened C you're talking about. Perl hides the file descriptor
-inside a CO> stream and then attaches the stream to
-a C.
+The little number the L uses to keep track of which
+opened L you're talking about. Perl hides the file descriptor
+inside a LO> stream and then attaches the stream to
+a L.
=item file test operator
A built-in unary operator that you use to determine whether something
-is C about a file, such as C<-o $filename> to test whether
+is L about a file, such as C<-o $filename> to test whether
you're the owner of the file.
=item fileglob
-A "wildcard" match on Cs. See the
+A "wildcard" match on L. See the
L function.
=item filehandle
@@ -1094,15 +1097,15 @@ each file.
=item filename
-One name for a file. This name is listed in a C, and you
-can use it in an L to tell the C, and you
+can use it in an L to tell the L exactly which file you want to open, and associate the file
-with a C which will carry the subsequent identity of that
+with a L which will carry the subsequent identity of that
file in your program, until you close it.
=item filesystem
-A set of L and Cs residing on a
+A set of L and L residing on a
partition of the disk. Sometimes known as a "partition". You can
change the file's name or even move a file around from directory to
directory within a filesystem without actually moving the file itself,
@@ -1110,13 +1113,13 @@ at least under Unix.
=item filter
-A program designed to take a C of input and transform it into
+A program designed to take a L of input and transform it into
a stream of output.
=item flag
We tend to avoid this term because it means so many things. It may
-mean a command-line C that takes no argument
+mean a command-line L that takes no argument
itself (such as Perl's B<-n> and B<-p>
flags) or, less frequently, a single-bit indicator (such as the
C and C flags used in
@@ -1128,35 +1131,35 @@ A method of storing numbers in "scientific notation", such that the
precision of the number is independent of its magnitude (the decimal
point "floats"). Perl does its numeric work with floating-point
numbers (sometimes called "floats"), when it can't get away with
-using Cs. Floating-point numbers are mere
+using L. Floating-point numbers are mere
approximations of real numbers.
=item flush
-The act of emptying a C, often before it's full.
+The act of emptying a L, often before it's full.
=item FMTEYEWTK
Far More Than Everything You Ever Wanted To Know. An exhaustive
-treatise on one narrow topic, something of a super-C. See Tom
+treatise on one narrow topic, something of a super-L. See Tom
for far more.
=item fork
-To create a child C identical to the parent process at its
+To create a child L identical to the parent process at its
moment of conception, at least until it gets ideas of its own. A
thread with protected memory.
=item formal arguments
-The generic names by which a C knows its
-Cs. In many languages, formal arguments are
+The generic names by which a L knows its
+L. In many languages, formal arguments are
always given individual names, but in Perl, the formal arguments are
just the elements of an array. The formal arguments to a Perl program
are C<$ARGV[0]>, C<$ARGV[1]>, and so on. Similarly, the formal
arguments to a Perl subroutine are C<$_[0]>, C<$_[1]>, and so on. You
may give the arguments individual names by assigning the values to a
-L list. See also C.
+L list. See also L.
=item format
@@ -1179,16 +1182,16 @@ a copy to all your friends.
Historically, any software that you give away, particularly if you
make the source code available as well. Now often called C. Recently there has been a trend to use the term in
-contradistinction to C, to refer only to free
+contradistinction to L, to refer only to free
software released under the Free Software Foundation's GPL (General
Public License), but this is difficult to justify etymologically.
=item function
Mathematically, a mapping of each of a set of input values to a
-particular output value. In computers, refers to a C or
-C that returns a C. It may or may not have input
-values (called Cs).
+particular output value. In computers, refers to a L or
+L that returns a L. It may or may not have input
+values (called L).
=item funny character
@@ -1215,30 +1218,30 @@ circular references and such.)
=item GID
-Group ID--in Unix, the numeric group ID that the C
-uses to identify you and members of your C.
+Group ID--in Unix, the numeric group ID that the L
+uses to identify you and members of your L.
=item glob
Strictly, the shell's C<*> character, which will match a "glob" of
characters when you're trying to generate a list of filenames.
Loosely, the act of using globs and similar symbols to do pattern
-matching. See also C and C.
+matching. See also L and L.
=item global
Something you can see from anywhere, usually used of
-Cs and Cs that are visible
+L and L that are visible
everywhere in your program. In Perl, only certain special variables
are truly global--most variables (and all subroutines) exist only in
-the current C. Global variables can be declared with
+the current L. Global variables can be declared with
L. See L.
=item global destruction
-The C of globals (and the running of any
+The L of globals (and the running of any
associated object destructors) that takes place when a Perl
-C is being shut down. Global destruction should not be
+L is being shut down. Global destruction should not be
confused with the Apocalypse, except perhaps when it should.
=item glue language
@@ -1252,7 +1255,7 @@ The size of the pieces you're dealing with, mentally speaking.
=item greedy
-A C whose C wants to match as many things as
+A L whose L wants to match as many things as
possible.
=item grep
@@ -1261,8 +1264,8 @@ Originally from the old Unix editor command for "Globally search for a
Regular Expression and Print it", now used in the general sense of any
kind of search, especially text searches. Perl has a built-in
L function that searches a list for elements
-matching any given criterion, whereas the C(1) program searches
-for lines matching a C in one or more files.
+matching any given criterion, whereas the I(1) program searches
+for lines matching a L in one or more files.
=item group
@@ -1272,8 +1275,8 @@ members of your group.
=item GV
-An internal "glob value" typedef, holding a C. The C
-type is a subclass of C.
+An internal "glob value" typedef, holding a L. The L
+type is a subclass of L.
=back
@@ -1286,31 +1289,31 @@ type is a subclass of C.
Someone who is brilliantly persistent in solving technical problems,
whether these involve golfing, fighting orcs, or programming. Hacker
is a neutral term, morally speaking. Good hackers are not to be
-confused with evil Cs or clueless L