... or better yet, just don't use $_ in such situations. You hit the nail on the head when you mentioned someone coming along and breaking it.

my $line;
while ($line = <>) {
    # stuff
}
[download]

i gonna wash that ambiguity outta my hair . . .

Jeff

R-R-R--R-R-R--R-R-R--R-R-R--R-R-R--
L-L--L-L--L-L--L-L--L-L--L-L--L-L--