IRIX Base Documentation 2002 November/SGI IRIX Base Documentation 2002 November.iso/usr/share/catman/u_man/cat1/perlbug.z/perlbug

Text File | 2002-10-03 | 12.4 KB | 331 lines

PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))                                                          PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))



NNNNAAAAMMMMEEEE
     perlbug - how to submit bug reports on Perl

SSSSYYYYNNNNOOOOPPPPSSSSIIIISSSS
     ppppeeeerrrrllllbbbbuuuugggg [ ----vvvv ] [ ----aaaa _a_d_d_r_e_s_s ] [ ----ssss _s_u_b_j_e_c_t ] [ ----bbbb _b_o_d_y | ----ffff _i_n_p_u_t_f_i_l_e ]
     [ ----FFFF _o_u_t_p_u_t_f_i_l_e ] [ ----rrrr _r_e_t_u_r_n_a_d_d_r_e_s_s ] [ ----eeee _e_d_i_t_o_r ]
     [ ----cccc _a_d_m_i_n_a_d_d_r_e_s_s | ----CCCC ] [ ----SSSS ] [ ----tttt ]  [ ----dddd ]  [ ----hhhh ]

     ppppeeeerrrrllllbbbbuuuugggg [ ----vvvv ] [ ----rrrr _r_e_t_u_r_n_a_d_d_r_e_s_s ] [ ----ooookkkk | ----ooookkkkaaaayyyy | ----nnnnooookkkk | ----nnnnooookkkkaaaayyyy ]

DDDDEEEESSSSCCCCRRRRIIIIPPPPTTTTIIIIOOOONNNN
     A program to help generate bug reports about perl or the modules that
     come with it, and mail them.

     If you have found a bug with a non-standard port (one that was not part
     of the _s_t_a_n_d_a_r_d _d_i_s_t_r_i_b_u_t_i_o_n), a binary distribution, or a non-standard
     module (such as Tk, CGI, etc), then please see the documentation that
     came with that distribution to determine the correct place to report
     bugs.

     perlbug is designed to be used interactively. Normally no arguments will
     be needed.  Simply run it, and follow the prompts.

     If you are unable to run ppppeeeerrrrllllbbbbuuuugggg (most likely because you don't have a
     working setup to send mail that perlbug recognizes), you may have to
     compose your own report, and email it to ppppeeeerrrrllllbbbbuuuugggg@@@@ppppeeeerrrrllll....ccccoooommmm.  You might
     find the ----dddd option useful to get summary information in that case.

     In any case, when reporting a bug, please make sure you have run through
     this checklist:

     What version of perl you are running?
         Type perl -v at the command line to find out.

     Are you running the latest released version of perl?
         Look at http://www.perl.com/ to find out.  If it is not the latest
         released version, get that one and see whether your bug has been
         fixed.  Note that bug reports about old versions of perl, especially
         those prior to the 5.0 release, are likely to fall upon deaf ears.
         You are on your own if you continue to use perl1 .. perl4.

     Are you sure what you have is a bug?
         A significant number of the bug reports we get turn out to be
         documented features in perl.  Make sure the behavior you are
         witnessing doesn't fall under that category, by glancing through the
         documentation that comes with perl (we'll admit this is no mean task,
         given the sheer volume of it all, but at least have a look at the
         sections that _s_e_e_m relevant).

         Be aware of the familiar traps that perl programmers of various hues
         fall into.  See the _p_e_r_l_t_r_a_p manpage.




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PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))                                                          PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))



         Try to study the problem under the perl debugger, if necessary.  See
         the _p_e_r_l_d_e_b_u_g manpage.

     Do you have a proper test case?
         The easier it is to reproduce your bug, the more likely it will be
         fixed, because if no one can duplicate the problem, no one can fix
         it.  A good test case has most of these attributes: fewest possible
         number of lines; few dependencies on external commands, modules, or
         libraries; runs on most platforms unimpeded; and is self-documenting.

         A good test case is almost always a good candidate to be on the perl
         test suite.  If you have the time, consider making your test case so
         that it will readily fit into the standard test suite.

     Can you describe the bug in plain English?
         The easier it is to understand a reproducible bug, the more likely it
         will be fixed.  Anything you can provide by way of insight into the
         problem helps a great deal.  In other words, try to analyse the
         problem to the extent you feel qualified and report your discoveries.

     Can you fix the bug yourself?
         A bug report which _i_n_c_l_u_d_e_s _a _p_a_t_c_h _t_o _f_i_x _i_t will almost definitely
         be fixed.  Use the diff program to generate your patches (diff is
         being maintained by the GNU folks as part of the ddddiiiiffffffffuuuuttttiiiillllssss package,
         so you should be able to get it from any of the GNU software
         repositories).  If you do submit a patch, the cool-dude counter at
         [e-mail] will register you as a savior of the world.  Your
         patch may be returned with requests for changes, or requests for more
         detailed explanations about your fix.

         Here are some clues for creating quality patches: Use the ----cccc or ----uuuu
         switches to the diff program (to create a so-called context or
         unified diff).  Make sure the patch is not reversed (the first
         argument to diff is typically the original file, the second argument
         your changed file).  Make sure you test your patch by applying it
         with the patch program before you send it on its way.  Try to follow
         the same style as the code you are trying to patch.  Make sure your
         patch really does work (make test, if the thing you're patching
         supports it).

     Can you use perlbug to submit the report?
         ppppeeeerrrrllllbbbbuuuugggg will, amongst other things, ensure your report includes
         crucial information about your version of perl.  If perlbug is unable
         to mail your report after you have typed it in, you may have to
         compose the message yourself, add the output produced by perlbug -d
         and email it to ppppeeeerrrrllllbbbbuuuugggg@@@@ppppeeeerrrrllll....ccccoooommmm.  If, for some reason, you cannot
         run perlbug at all on your system, be sure to include the entire
         output produced by running perl -V (note the uppercase V).

     Having done your bit, please be prepared to wait, to be told the bug is
     in your code, or even to get no reply at all.  The perl maintainers are
     busy folks, so if your problem is a small one or if it is difficult to



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PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))                                                          PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))



     understand or already known, they may not respond with a personal reply.
     If it is important to you that your bug be fixed, do monitor the Changes
     file in any development releases since the time you submitted the bug,
     and encourage the maintainers with kind words (but never any flames!).
     Feel free to resend your bug report if the next released version of perl
     comes out and your bug is still present.

OOOOPPPPTTTTIIIIOOOONNNNSSSS
     ----aaaa      Address to send the report to.  Defaults to `[e-mail]'.

     ----bbbb      Body of the report.  If not included on the command line, or in a
             file with ----ffff, you will get a chance to edit the message.

     ----CCCC      Don't send copy to administrator.

     ----cccc      Address to send copy of report to.  Defaults to the address of
             the local perl administrator (recorded when perl was built).

     ----dddd      Data mode (the default if you redirect or pipe output).  This
             prints out your configuration data, without mailing anything.
             You can use this with ----vvvv to get more complete data.

     ----eeee      Editor to use.

     ----ffff      File containing the body of the report.  Use this to quickly send
             a prepared message.

     ----FFFF      File to output the results to instead of sending as an email.
             Useful particularly when running perlbug on a machine with no
             direct internet connection.

     ----hhhh      Prints a brief summary of the options.

     ----ooookkkk     Report successful build on this system to perl porters. Forces ----SSSS
             and ----CCCC. Forces and supplies values for ----ssss and ----bbbb. Only prompts
             for a return address if it cannot guess it (for use with mmmmaaaakkkkeeee).
             Honors return address specified with ----rrrr.  You can use this with
             ----vvvv to get more complete data.   Only makes a report if this
             system is less than 60 days old.

     ----ooookkkkaaaayyyy   As ----ooookkkk except it will report on older systems.

     ----nnnnooookkkk    Report unsuccessful build on this system.  Forces ----CCCC.  Forces and
             supplies a value for ----ssss, then requires you to edit the report and
             say what went wrong.  Alternatively, a prepared report may be
             supplied using ----ffff.  Only prompts for a return address if it
             cannot guess it (for use with mmmmaaaakkkkeeee). Honors return address
             specified with ----rrrr.  You can use this with ----vvvv to get more complete
             data.  Only makes a report if this system is less than 60 days
             old.





                                                                        PPPPaaaaggggeeee 3333






PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))                                                          PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))



     ----nnnnooookkkkaaaayyyy  As ----nnnnooookkkk except it will report on older systems.

     ----rrrr      Your return address.  The program will ask you to confirm its
             default if you don't use this option.

     ----SSSS      Send without asking for confirmation.

     ----ssss      Subject to include with the message.  You will be prompted if you
             don't supply one on the command line.

     ----tttt      Test mode.  The target address defaults to `perlbug-
             [e-mail]'.

     ----vvvv      Include verbose configuration data in the report.

AAAAUUUUTTTTHHHHOOOORRRRSSSS
     Kenneth Albanowski (<[e-mail]>), subsequently _d_o_ctored by
     Gurusamy Sarathy (<[e-mail]>), Tom Christiansen
     (<[e-mail]>), Nathan Torkington (<[e-mail]>), Charles F.
     Randall (<[e-mail]>), Mike Guy (<[e-mail]>), Dominic Dunlop
     (<[e-mail]>) and Hugo van der Sanden (<[e-mail]>).

SSSSEEEEEEEE AAAALLLLSSSSOOOO
     _p_e_r_l(1), _p_e_r_l_d_e_b_u_g(1), _p_e_r_l_t_r_a_p(1), _d_i_f_f(1), _p_a_t_c_h(1)

BBBBUUUUGGGGSSSS
     None known (guess what must have been used to report them?)




























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PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))                                                          PPPPEEEERRRRLLLLBBBBUUUUGGGG((((1111))))























































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