ActivePerl Readme File

 

Contents

Note: O'Reilly Perl Resource Kit -- Win32 Edition Users

If you have the Perl Resource Kit -- Win32 Edition you should not install build 503 of ActivePerl. ActiveState will be providing a service pack which will update your PRK installation with build 503 of ActivePerl and revised utility binaries that address issues that some users have encountered. More information about the PRK is available at http://www.activestate.com/PRK/. PRK related release information is posted to the perl-win32-prk mailing list. You can join this list and receive timely information by emailing lyris@lyris.ActiveState.com with the following message in the body of the email:

subscribe perl-win32-prk

What is ActivePerl?

The ActivePerl Package is the most significant and exciting advance in Perl on Win32 platforms since version 5 was first released. Remember the days of "which port are you using" and "does this module support this port"? Well, those days are gone with the 8088! This is the long-awaited "merge" of the two popular Perl ports, and has the absolute best of both plus more!

ActivePerl has:

  • Merge of ActiveState Perl Object technology into core Perl.
  • Easy installation with InstallShield installer.
  • Support for standard extension mechanisms like makemaker.
  • Easy installation and management of modules and extensions with Perl Package Manager.
  • Binaries for most CPAN modules available from ActiveState's repository including Tk and GD.
  • Updated FAQs specifically written for Win32, and complete, integrated online help in HTML.

The complete ActivePerl Package contains:

  • Perl for Win32 - binary of core perl distribution.
  • Perl for ISAPI - IIS plug-in that makes perl CGI faster.
  • PerlScript - ActiveX scripting engine, like JavaScript or VBScript with a Perl brain.
  • Perl Package Manager - Perl extension installer and manager.

A complete list of what has changed since the 300 series builds of Perl for Win32 can be found here.

The ActivePerl Package is covered by the Community License. This defines your rights to use and redistribute this package.

Getting Started

Running Perl scripts from the command line

First, Install ActivePerl.

To run your Perl scripts, type:

perl <scriptname>

at the command prompt, where <scriptname> is the name of the script you want to launch. Also, if you are using Windows NT and have associated the extension of the file with perl, typing <scriptname> will also launch the script.

Sample Script

In the /eg directory of your Perl install there is a sample script named example.pl To run it, launch a console window, make the /eg directory your current working directory and type:

  • perl example.pl

You should see:

  • "Hello from ActivePerl!"

If you do, you've successfully installed ActivePerl! If not, there's something wrong with your install. Check to make sure that your Path environment variable includes the directories to which you installed the Perl for Win32 core binaries. (You can type set at the command prompt to see what's in your Path.) If you chose the defaults during the install, these should be set to the correct values for you when you start a new command prompt.

One last note, typing perl -h will display all of the available command line options available to you.

Troubleshooting FAQ

The ActivePerl Package comes with the newly updated collection of Frequently Asked Questions about Perl for Win32. The FAQ is a valuable source of distilled wisdom about using Perl on the Win32 platform. It is a must read!

Questions, comments and info

We're interested in what you have to say. Do you like the new installer? Do you have something that used to work that just doesn't work anymore? Any incompatibilities? Let us know! We can't guarantee that all suggestions will be implemented in future releases, but we'll do our best!

Please submit bug reports, requests for changes and other comments here. All bug reports should be accompanied by one or more concrete examples that will help us reproduce the problem. Include all relevant information that you think will help us recreate the particular environment in which the bug was observed. Remember, if we cannot reproduce the problem, we cannot fix it!

General help and questions about using ActivePerl are available from the Perl-Win32-Users mailing list. ActiveState also hosts several other highly engaging mailing-lists on various topics related to Perl.

Before posting to any of the mailing lists, please be sure to read the online documentation included with every copy of ActivePerl, which includes the Perl FAQ, the Perl for Win32 FAQ, and further technical information about the Win32 port.

Thanks!

 
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