This is an odd situation and I'm just about at wit's end...

On HP/UX we have some perl scripts to communicate via LWP::UserAgent.

Some users can run the script, no problem; others get the following error:

Socket object version 1.94 does not match bootstrap parameter 2.006 at
+ /opt/perl514/lib/5.14.2/PA-RISC2.0-thread-multi/DynaLoader.pm line 2
+13.
Compilation failed in require at /opt/perl514/lib/5.14.2/PA-RISC2.0-th
+read-multi/IO/Socket.pm line 12.
BEGIN failed--compilation aborted at /opt/perl514/lib/5.14.2/PA-RISC2.
+0-thread-multi/IO/Socket.pm line 12.
[download]

Where it dies is on "require IO::Socket" (or anything that pulls in "Socket.pm").

In trying to debug this, we've dumped lots of environment variables and @INC and %INC at various stages. All users show they're using /opt/perl514/lib/... for loading libraries.

So for debugging output we generated a listing of loaded modules based on keys %INC:

foreach my $file ( sort keys %INC ) {
   my $mod = "$file";
   next unless $mod =~ s/[.]pm$//;
   $mod =~ s{/}{::}g;
   my $ver = eval('$' . $mod . '::VERSION or "[unknown]"');
   push @output, [ $mod, $ver ];
}
...
[download]

Users who CAN run the script have these modules loaded right before "require IO::Socket":

AutoLoader                       5.71
Carp                             1.20
Compress::Raw::Zlib              2.045
Config                           [unknown]
Crypt::SSLeay                    0.58
Crypt::SSLeay::CTX               [unknown]
Crypt::SSLeay::MainContext       [unknown]
Crypt::SSLeay::X509              [unknown]
Errno                            1.13
Exporter                         5.64_03
Exporter::Heavy                  5.64_03
Fcntl                            1.11
File::Glob                       1.13
File::GlobMapper                 1.000
File::Spec                       3.33
File::Spec::Unix                 3.33
Getopt::Std                      1.06
HTTP::Config                     5.815
HTTP::Date                       5.831
HTTP::Headers                    5.827
HTTP::Message                    5.834
HTTP::Request                    5.827
HTTP::Response                   5.824
HTTP::Status                     5.817
IO                               1.25_04
IO::Compress::Base::Common       2.045
IO::Compress::Gzip::Constants    2.045
IO::Compress::Zlib::Extra        2.045
IO::File                         1.15
IO::Handle                       1.31
IO::Seekable                     1.1
IO::Socket                       1.32
IO::Socket::INET                 1.31
IO::Socket::UNIX                 1.23
IO::Uncompress::Adapter::Inflate 2.045
IO::Uncompress::Base             2.046
IO::Uncompress::Gunzip           2.045
IO::Uncompress::RawInflate       2.045
LWP                              5.834
LWP::MemberMixin                 [unknown]
LWP::Protocol                    5.829
LWP::Protocol::http              [unknown]
LWP::Protocol::https             [unknown]
LWP::UserAgent                   5.834
List::Util                       1.23
MIME::Base64                     3.13
Net::HTTP                        5.834
Net::HTTP::Methods               5.834
Net::HTTPS                       5.819
Net::SSL                         2.85
Scalar::Util                     1.23
SelectSaver                      1.02
Socket                           2.006
Storable                         2.30
Symbol                           1.07
Time::Local                      1.2000
URI                              1.59
URI::Escape                      3.31
URI::_generic                    [unknown]
URI::_idna                       [unknown]
URI::_punycode                   0.04
URI::_query                      [unknown]
URI::_server                     [unknown]
URI::http                        [unknown]
URI::https                       [unknown]
XSLoader                         0.13
bytes                            1.04
constant                         1.21
feature                          1.20
integer                          1.00
overload                         1.13
strict                           1.04
utf8                             1.09
vars                             1.02
warnings                         1.12
warnings::register               1.02
[download]

By contrast, the users who CANNOT run the script, have these modules loaded instead -- e.g. DynaLoader instead of AutoLoader?

Carp                 1.20
Config               [unknown]
DynaLoader           1.13
Errno                1.13
Exporter             5.64_03
Exporter::Heavy      5.64_03
Fcntl                1.11
Getopt::Std          1.06
HTTP::Config         5.815
HTTP::Date           5.831
HTTP::Headers        5.827
HTTP::Message        5.834
HTTP::Request        5.827
HTTP::Response       5.824
HTTP::Status         5.817
IO                   1.25_04
IO::Handle           1.31
IO::Socket           [unknown]
IO::Socket::INET     [unknown]
LWP                  5.834
LWP::MemberMixin     [unknown]
LWP::Protocol        5.829
LWP::Protocol::http  [unknown]
LWP::Protocol::https [unknown]
LWP::UserAgent       5.834
MIME::Base64         3.13
Net::HTTP            5.834
SelectSaver          1.02
Socket               2.006
Storable             2.30
Symbol               1.07
Time::Local          1.2000
URI                  1.59
URI::Escape          3.31
URI::_generic        [unknown]
URI::_idna           [unknown]
URI::_punycode       0.04
URI::_query          [unknown]
URI::_server         [unknown]
URI::http            [unknown]
URI::https           [unknown]
XSLoader             0.13
constant             1.21
integer              1.00
overload             1.13
strict               1.04
vars                 1.02
warnings             1.12
warnings::register   1.02
[download]

All module-paths (from values %INC) are /opt/perl514/lib/...

Suggestions?

I'm a total newb when it comes to security, and I am trying to figure out how to use taint mode to locate and patch vulnerabilities in a Perl CGI application.

I have read a bit about taint mode, and I am puzzled by two things that don't seem to make sense. So I am wondering if I am just misunderstanding something.

Firstly, it seems that when I apply a regexp match to a tainted variable, then Perl considers the matched groups to NOT be tainted. The assumption being that I executed this regexp match specifically to remove potential threats from the tainted sting.

This seems to be a very naive assumption. For example, it is very common for me to remove leading and trailing space from a text input, before proceeding ahead with it. From then on, Perl would consider that the input is untainted, eventhough the regexp match I applied to it has nothing to do with removing potential threats from it.

When I first read about taint mode, I assume that there would be some kind of function untainted(), which would label a particular variable as having been untainted. But there doesn't seem to be a way to do that.

The other thing I notice is that Perl only considers tainted variable as being dangerous when used in system calls and the like. But there are many other situations where using a tainted variable is dangerous. For example, if I write some JavaScript code to my CGI scripts STDOUT, and that code is composed based on the content of a tainted variable, then I might be opening my application to a cross site scripting attack. Yet, Perl considers that priting a tainted value to STDOUT is safe.

Again, when I first started reading about taint mode, I expected that it would identify every single instance of tainted variable and force me to look at it explicitly. But instead, it only flags the use of tainted variables in contexts where Perl thinks it might be unsafe to use, and obviously, Perl's idea of what is safe is too permissive. Is there a way to tell taint mode to identify all tainted variables, whether they are used in an unsafe fashion or not?

Hi, i'm playing around with Mouse roles and got stuck.

Role #1:

package ReadFile;

use Mouse::Role;
use MyTypes;
use IO::File;

requires qw(lines);

has '_io' => (
    is       => 'ro',
    isa      => 'MyCompany::ReadFile',
    builder  => '_build_read_file',
    handles  => [ qw( open getlines close) ],
    init_arg => undef,
    lazy     => 1,
);

sub _build_read_file() {
    my $self = shift;
    IO::File->new();
}

# sub read_file() {
#     my ( $self, $file ) = @_;
#     $self->open( $file);
#     my @lines = $self->getlines();
#     $self->close();
#     chomp(@lines);
#     $self->lines(\@lines);
# }

1;
[download]

This one fails on init with the followings errors:

In Handle.pm Line 434: # Special XS wrapper to make them inherit lexical hints from the caller. _create_getline_subs(<<'END' ) or die $@;

In Seekable.pm line 101: use IO::Handle ();

In File.pm line 133: use IO::Seekable;

But the next one works.

Role #2:

package DBIxODBC;

use Mouse::Role;
use MyTypes;
use DBIx::Simple;

requires qw( user passwd dsn );

with qw(Timestamp);

has 'data' => (
    is      => 'rw',
    isa     => 'HashRef',
    trigger => \&_load,
);

has '_dbix' => (
    is      => 'ro',
    isa     => 'MyCompany::DBIx',
    handles => [qw( insert)],
    builder => '_build_dbix',
    init_arg => undef,
    lazy    => 1,
);

sub _build_dbix() {
    my $self = shift;
    my $connect_string;
    $connect_string = "dbi:ODBC:" . $self->dsn;
    DBIx::Simple->new( $connect_string, $self->user, $self->passwd );
}

sub _load() {
    my ( $self, $input ) = @_;
    my $table = ( keys %$input )[0];
    $self->insert( $table, $input->{$table} );
    print $self->timestamp . qq(\n);
}

1;
[download]

Thank you very much for any advice.

Best regards,

Karl

Hi guys. I've been mulling this one over for awhile now, trying to decide/work out how best to handle it.

One of my users has a report she would like to run which results in over 1000 pages of rather poorly-presented text. Needless to say, she would like it if I could arrange for this to be trimmed considerably. My intention is to build this up, firstly, getting the data extraction right, and then I will use Spreadsheet::WriteExcel to put it into a much more friendly format for her.

See below for an example of the kind of text I'm working with - note this is just part of one "order", and these are repeated numerous times throughout the file. All the dates etc. have the "ability" of being different, so each "order" and each "distribution" of each order need to be extracted and handled on an individual basis.

                             List of Distributions                    
+          
                                                                      
+          
                  Produced Tuesday, 9 October, 2012 at 1:38 PM        
+          
                                                                      
+          


       Order ID:PO-9999                  fiscal cycle:21112
      Vendor ID:VEND99                     order type:SUBSCRIPT 
    15)   requisition number:                      copies:9    
                call number:XX(9999999.999)                          
                  ISBN/ISSN:9999-999X           
         Title:Item title here.
         ISSN:9999-999X
         Publication info:More text here about stuff

        Distribution--
            packing list:STUFF-I-DONT-NEED-999      
            holding code:CODEINFO1                   copies:1    
           date received:27/6/2012                             date lo
+aded:27/6/
2012              
        Distribution--
            packing list:STUFF-I-DONT-NEED-999
            holding code:CODEINFO3                    copies:2    
           date received:27/9/2012                             date lo
+aded:27/6/
2012              
        Distribution--
            packing list:STUFF-I-DONT-NEED-999
            holding code:CODEINFO2                     copies:1    
           date received:25/8/2012                             date lo
+aded:27/6/
2012              
[download]

So, out of that, I need to grab the values from the (in order of appearance) Order ID, fiscal cycle, Vendor ID, the number to the left of "requisition number", copies, title, ISBN/ISSN, holding code, copies, date received, date loaded.

My idea at this point in time, is to perform a loop, looking for the start of the data I need to grab. I have managed to get this part done using :

open (IN, "<$distfile") or die "Can't open $distfile\n";
print "File opened\n";
while ($line = <IN>) {
  chomp($line);
  if ( $line =~ /^(\s+.+)Order ID/ )
    {
    print "Found Order ID\n";
    }
  }
[download]

That part works fine. I then moved on to actually trying to extract the data from the crud. The idea was to just loop through each bracket of data, stripping the data out of each line separately.

So, for the first one, I designed a regex which matches everything except the two pieces of data I want from the "Order ID" line. The plan was to negate that match, and dump the results into a variable, then move on to the next line. Sounded relatively easy, but I've not been able to work out where I've gone wrong with it... I think if I can get a little help working out how to do this one line, then the rest of it should fall into place pretty readily...

The test I have been trying to use for this is :

  my ($order,$fiscal) = ($line !~ m/(\s+Order ID:|\s+fiscal cycle:)/g)
+;
  print "Order # $order, Fiscal year: $fiscal\n";
[download]

As it stands above, I get a string printed with null values. If I change the "!~" to "=~" then I get the output:

... which is why I was trying to negate the regex match. So... could you please help me understand where it is I'm going wrong with this? Am I going about this the right way, or should I be thinking along different lines for processing all this text?

Thanks in advance for any assistance you can give.

Hi Monks,

print ("adf","ff","f"); # Gladly prints the list
print ("adf","ff","f")[1]; #Gives a syntax error
$val=("adf","ff","f")[1];print $val; #Works easily
print join "",("adf","ff","f"); #Works
print join "",("adf","ff","f")[1]; #Works since treated in list contex
+t
[download]

(sort {$a<=>} @lst)[0] # an alternative way to get min value from some
+ numeric list.
[download]

obj.method()[2] #when we know that method returns an array
[download]

Tried to search a little about this, but could not find a reasonable thread for the same. Sorry again if this is some conceptual weakness of mine.

#!/usr/bin/perl

if ($^O eq 'linux') { $LINUX=1; };

if ($LINUX) {
print STDERR "OS is Linux\n";
use MIDI::ALSA ('SND_SEQ_EVENT_PORT_UNSUBSCRIBED',
                'SND_SEQ_EVENT_SYSEX');
MIDI::ALSA::client('test',1,1,1);
MIDI::ALSA::connectfrom(0,'MidiSport 4x4:0');
MIDI::ALSA::connectto(1,'MidiSport 4x4:0');
MIDI::ALSA::start();

}
[download]

open(FILE,"/path/to/file.txt") or die "could not open file: $!";
my @_lines = <FILE>; # After I open the file for reading
close(FILE);
my $_numOfLines = scalar @_lines;# Is that right? I think it is, but m
+y mind is rusty, been a while since I learned all of the perl program
+ming
[download]

open(old, "| /bin/old");

foreach my $INPUT(@DATA)
{
my ($LAST_NAME,$FIRSTNAME,$ID_NUM,$BOOK) = split(/\s+/,$INPUT);
print old "$LAST_NAME\t$FIRSTNAME\n"
print old "\t$ID_NUM\t$BOOK\n"
}
[download]

How do I find out the last day of the previous month? In other words, I want a subroutine that, when run today, will return "09/30/2012" (a string in mm/dd/yyyy format)? If the function is run a week from now it will return "10/31/2012"? And if the function was run sometime last March, it would return "02/29/2012" (leap-year day). How do I do this?

The moment of truth....

"user@host ~$ sudo parse config.lua"

And with this, the first functional 319 lines of code (aka parse) I've ever written, charge into my bare-bones implementation of a terminal based theme-manager for the Awesome Window Manager.

Blank stares from my girlfriend as I rejoice in the successful run resulted from the hours and days and nights of work on this project. The hundreds of pages and internet posts read through. The endless wall of warnings reminding me about this comma, or that semi-colon, that I forgot to add while my eyes battled sleep in the hours after midnight. Telling myself I just need 10 more minutes as the sun rises outside the window and I'm still trying to figure out where the heck the data from that hash really wound up. It all seems worth it in that moment.

I just wanted to say thank you to all the monks here at the Monastery contributing to the learning of others. It is here that I learned how to greet the world with print "hello world!\n";, and it is here that I read, and tried, and failed, and read more. These 319 lines of frustration and lightbulbs clicking on, torment and accomplishment, and failures and failures and failures, and success are my offering to the Monastery. From "Hello World", to hashes of arrays of hashes and multi-line regular expressions, I have you to thank. I have miles and years and tens of thousands of pages and posts to go, but it is my humble and hard-fought beginning.

To other Rookies fighting the good fight for no paycheck, and no homework assignment, learning for no purpose other than the great puzzle of it all, I say: You can do it too... All it takes is energy drinks and Seekers of Perl Wisdom.

Thank you all so much for your selfless contributions, words of advice and hours of experience shared with myself and others. The quality of this community is unsurpassed

-marquezc329

My original motivation was a project in which I needed to input an existing PDF (generated by some unknown method) and prepend a coversheet containing a barcode derived from some metadata (passed in as separate arguments; not from the file itself). The barcodes are so people can fax them back to me and I can route the documents, but that's a different story.

If you like counting pixels and keeping track of text's baseline and things like that, you'll love PDF::API2. It's meant to be a low-level tool, and if you want very fine-grained control of your layouts, it's the tool for you. The best examples I found are

• Making Sudoku Puzzles Using PDF::API2
• http://rick.measham.id.au/pdf-api2/

As a low-level tool for creating PDFs, PDF::API2 is everything I want. For reading PDFs, my experience is a bit more mixed. There is a known issue with some features of PDF 1.5 and up. That is a problem for my project, because I consume PDFs people make and "please go back and save this as version 1.4" isn't an option.

To manipulate existing PDFs, CAM::PDF works fine. As of version 1.58, it doesn't claim to broad support for PDF versions beyond 1.5, but my experience is that it can read any PDF I've thrown at it. It bills itself as a PDF manipulation library, and it can do all the helpful things like rearrange pages, import pages from another document, and even clever tricks like swapping out one image for another. So if you have a document and want to tweak it or learn about it, CAM::PDF is a good choice.

In our particular case, we combined the two. We use PDF::API2 to create a one-page coversheet document, then use CAM::PDF to prepend it to the original. It's early days, and nobody is trying to mess me up with complicated PDFs yet, but so far it seems to be working out nicely.

For the last week I've been trying to figure out an algorithm for JPEG's zig-zag spacefilling curve. Specifically, I wanted an algorithm that maps all elements in an NxN matrix to a N*N array given their x and y values. I finally figured it out with the help of my analysis 101 TA. He's not a computer scientist, but he knows what pairing functions are. Anyway, after a few hours messing with perl, I made this subroutine:

sub getPos{
    ($x,$y,$s)=@_;($d=$x+$y)*($d++)/2
    +($d%2?$y:$x)-($d>$s)*($d-$s)**2
}
[download]

To use it, you do something like this:

for(my $x = 0; $x < $size; $x++){
    for(my $y = 0; $y < $size; $y++){
        print getPos($x, $y, $size)."  ";
    }
    print "\n";
}
[download]

For $size = 10 the loop will yield:

0  1  5  6  14  15  27  28  44  45  
2  4  7  13  16  26  29  43  46  63  
3  8  12  17  25  30  42  47  62  64  
9  11  18  24  31  41  48  61  65  78  
10  19  23  32  40  49  60  66  77  79  
20  22  33  39  50  59  67  76  80  89  
21  34  38  51  58  68  75  81  88  90  
35  37  52  57  69  74  82  87  91  96  
36  53  56  70  73  83  86  92  95  97  
54  55  71  72  84  85  93  94  98  99
[download]

The body of getPos has 65 (non-whitespace) characters, any ideas on how to get it even smaller?

$==pop;print map{$y=$_;map(($d=$y+$_)*($d++)/2-($d>$=)*($d-$=)**2+($d&
+1?$_:$y).$",@m),$/}@m=0..$=-1
[download]