Perl Program Repair Shop and Red Flags

Please Contribute Code!

To do this right, I need real examples of real code that other people wrote. I have about half the examples that I need. I hope that the Perl community can provide the other half.

What you get out of it

If I use your code in the book, you will receive:

1. A reviewed, improved, debugged version of your program
2. My personal gratitude
3. A free copy of the book, once it's published
4. Your choice of:
   1. Full credit in the preface of the book, identifying you by name and the code that you contributed, or
   2. Credit in the preface of the book, identifying you by name, but not what code you contributed, or
   3. No credit at all and my solemn promise never to reveal your identity

Important!

By sending me your code, you are giving me permission to use it in the book and in related talks and classes in any way I see fit. If you don't want me to use it, don't send it.

What I Need

• The code does not have to be unusually bad. I have plenty of really rotten examples already. You can even send code you're proud of.
• The code should be between 100 and 700 lines long, more or less. I think I have enough short examples, so longer examples would probably be more useful at this point.
• It can be a module, a related suite of modules, a standalone program, or a program and its modules. But I need the complete source code for any part I can't get from CPAN.
• It should perform some function that can be understood in isolation. It should be clear to a reader what it is doing, even if it's not clear why it is doing that. It isn't important for the ultimate purpose to be understandable, but it is important that the code's immediate purpose is understandable.

  For example, here is something I could use:

  This is a CGI program that plays tic-tac-toe.

  I could also use this:

  This program scans ./wuexport looking for files, which it then copies to ./wuexport/00123, where the 00123 is one greater than the largest number already in ./wuexport.

  That's quite clear. Nobody knows why it needs to do that, but that's OK. Here is something I can't use:

  This program calculates the number of unit-annuities under both the amortized and the annual income change methods, depending on the formulary in use at the time the annuity was vested.

• It's OK if the program depends on a bunch of CPAN modules, or a bunch of modules you don't send me, as long as what it's doing is clear.
• If the program reads some input, I need sample inputs.
• You should have permission from the author of the code for me to use it, whether or not the author is the owner of the code.
• Most important requirement: I must be able to get permission from the owner to use the code in the book! If the code belongs to someone else, I need permission from them. If it belongs to your company, I need permission from someone in authority.

How to contribute

Send code to mjd@plover.com.

If you're sending code because I'm going to give a talk in your city or for your Perl Mongers group, tell me where you live so that I don't accidentally use your code in the wrong place!

Don't forget to tell me if you want me to keep your submission anonymous or not. You have three choices: I keep you completely anonymous; I credit you in the preface of the book without saying which contribution is yours; or I give you full credit.

Questions?

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