Ubuntu Unleashed 2013 Edition: Covering 12.10 and 13.04, Eighth Edition

Perl Variable Types

Perl has three variable types: scalars, arrays, and hashes. A different character is used to signify each variable type, so you can have the same name used with each type at the same time.

Scalar variables are indicated with the $ character, as in $penguin. Scalars can be numbers or strings, and they can change type from one to the other as needed. If you treat a number like a string, it becomes a string. If you treat a string like a number, it is translated into a number if it makes sense to do so; otherwise, it usually evaluates to 0. For example, the string "76trombones" evaluates as the number 76 if used in a numeric calculation, but the string "polar bear" evaluates to 0.

Perl arrays are indicated with the @ character, ...