Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!uunet!bfmny0!tneff
From: tneff@bfmny0.BFM.COM (Tom Neff)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.perl
Subject: Structures in Perl
Summary: give us a real enum instead
Message-ID: <15886@bfmny0.BFM.COM>
Date: 26 Sep 90 09:27:29 GMT
Reply-To: tneff@bfmny0.BFM.COM (Tom Neff)
Lines: 30

Instead of implementing structures in Perl, let's add a real enum()
to replace the various "enum.pl" packages.  And make the dollar sign
optional for enum variable definitions.  Thus

	enum(red=100,blue,green,yellow,orange)

then

	$mycolor=$blue;

Make the native enum() mark its variables read-only until the next
reset() call.  Force them to be longs only.  Optimize self defining
values at compile time if possible.

That way Perl would effectively already have structures.

	enum(fname,ftype,fdate,fsize,fflags);

	$FCB[fname] = "myfile.tmp";
	$FCB[ftype] = 3;

Note that making the dollar signs optional in subscript references might
help readability too.


system("echo Randal please send me a new JAPH | rmail merlyn@iwarp.intel.com");

-- 
"It has come to my attention that there is more  !!!  Tom Neff
than one Jeffrey Miller." -- Jeffrey Miller      ! !  tneff@bfmny0.BFM.COM