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Issue #775 - 2026-06-01 - Events and using AI to write Perl
latest | archive | edited by Gabor Szabo
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Hi there! I try to keep track of the Perl-related events. You can find them listed at the bottom of each edition of the newsletter and on the events page on the Perl Weekly web site. There you can also find a link to embed the calendar in your calendar program. There are a number of events scheduled for this month. Most of them online, so if your time-zone permits, you can join those events. The big in-person event is at the end of the month The Perl and Raku Conference in Greenville, South Carolina, USA. In the last couple of weeks I have been using various AI tools extensively. It still needs some hand-holding, but it already writes code that seems to be way better than the average code I've seen. So I wonder, would it be possible to ask one of the AI tools to convert Python libraries to Perl? You know, we have been complaining for many years that companies provide implementation for their SDK/API/client in several language, but not in Perl. We also saw that CPAN could not keep up with the growth of PyPI, npm and the other 3rd party library registries. So maybe some of you would like to explore the idea of converting some of these libraries to Perl using AI. Finally a personal note, I am planning a trip to Korea and Japan in September-October. If you live there and would have any travel recommendations, I'd love to get that. Enjoy your week! Gabor Szabo |
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Articles
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by Toby Inkster (TOBYINK) Toby Inkster created a programming language which blends a fairly JavaScript-like syntax with fairly Perl-like semantics, and a few other features that he hasn't really seen in many programming languages. |
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by Dave Cross (DAVECROSS) The site already exposes information through a traditional web interface and a JSON API. But those interfaces were designed for humans and developers respectively. MCP gives AI systems a much cleaner integration point. | 
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Discussion
Perl
The Weekly Challenge
The Weekly Challenge by Mohammad Sajid Anwar will help you step out of your comfort-zone. You can even win prize money of $50 by participating in the weekly challenge. We pick one champion at the end of the month from among all of the contributors during the month, thanks to the sponsor Marc Perry.
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by Mohammad Sajid Anwar (MANWAR) Welcome to a new week with a couple of fun tasks "Chessboard Squares" and "Doubled Words". If you are new to the weekly challenge then why not join us and have fun every week. For more information, please read the FAQ. | 
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by Mohammad Sajid Anwar (MANWAR) Enjoy a quick recap of last week's contributions by Team PWC dealing with the "Single Common Word" and "Find K-Beauty" tasks in Perl and Raku. You will find plenty of solutions to keep you busy. |
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by Arne Sommer This is an excellent example of how to use Raku's idiomatic style to perform frequency analysis with a very elegant way of using Bag data type and to make use of the %% operator for nice clean checks of divisibility by using Raku's built in primitives instead of having to write complex manual logic. | 
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by Jaldhar H. Vyas It provides an excellent, straightforward exhibition on how to solve the problems associated with Weekly Challenge 375 in Raku and Perl. In addition to showing off some of the more sophisticated, expressive data types that Raku supports (i.e., Bag) Jaldhar shows how they were able to implement clever, easy-to-read workarounds in Perl to accomplish essentially the same thing. |
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by Jorg Sommrey This blog post does a great job of examining and comparing the practical solutions using Perl and an advanced version of programming with the J language. The way Jorg has generalised the different types of problems he presented creates a sophisticated solution for someone that will accept any number of bases and/or arrays as inputs, and produces results that would be considered to be of a high standard. |
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by W Luis Mochan This post shows a clear-cut way to address a problem and demonstrate a solid grasp of Perl's function-based capabilities. It uses expressive one-line Perl statements to demonstrate how small, readable, and consistent code can be written to transform data. | 
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by Matthias Muth This is an exemplary work featuring high-quality code that has a high degree of maintainability, uses excellent error check techniques and provides high levels of readability. In addition to using excellent reading technique, his solutions include well-documented logic and complete test suites. |
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by Packy Anderson (PACKY) Packy has created an outstanding multi-language deep dive post comparing different implementations of Raku, Perl, Python, and Elixir. In addition to providing many details about each language's implementation, his approach is to focus on making it easy to read and easy to follow the logic behind each one in spite of their technical complexities. He shows us how we can take the same data structure using different paradigms to create different implementation solutions for the same problem. | 
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by Peter Campbell Smith This solution exemplifies how effective algorithms can be designed, using math formulas as a way of running multiple sets of frequencies over a single array. It’s an example of a very concise method of solving complex state-tracking issues, using the least amount of code as possible while maintaining a high degree of readability. | 
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by Reinier Maliepaard A clear and systematically organised method for resolving this issue is provided within this post, as well as a very easy to read content style, making it simple to see the reasoning behind the solution. Among other things, this post displays a good presentation of example test cases and has a good way of providing technical explanations to both new to experienced software programmers alike. |
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by Reinier Maliepaard This blog post exemplifies well-designed code that solves the "Find K-Beauty" problem in a strong manner. Reinier does an excellent job of providing clear, modular logic and using the least amount of code to implement those solutions. This allows the reader to see how the sliding window method works to find divisors in the number's format. |
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by Robbie Hatley This post presents an incredibly complete and conversational analysis of the obstacles, illustrated with sophisticated technical knowledge through a thoroughly well-organised, educational format. Robbie's skill at blending solid, production-level Perl code with detailed explanation of the rationale behind it provides readers with an excellent foundation for either becoming familiarized with this form of problem solving or gaining greater depth of understanding regarding the "how" and "why" of idiomatic Perl. |
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by Roger Bell West (FIREDRAKE) Roger produced a very thorough, well-organised explanation of the problem, using techniques such as hash frequencies and sliding windows to create solutions that are both clean and accurate. By comparing the two different languages Perl and Scala, Roger shows that they clearly understand how to approach solving problems using multiple programming languages. |
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by Simon Green (SGREEN) This is an excellent example of a bilingual coding approach. It contrasts high-level data structures in Python with Perl's more flexible but lower-level data manipulation. Simon offers a clear explanation of the two different languages used to explain how one would move algorithmic logic from one programming paradigm to another by providing step-by-step instructions and side-by-side examples. | 
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