CGI array with key value pairs?

mr007619 has asked for the wisdom of the Perl Monks concerning the following question:

So I'm trying to pass an array to CGI from Jquery, I haven't had a problem with this in the past, but in this instance I'm trying to do key/value pairs. My http request headers look like this:

id:id1
services[0][name]:test
services[0][type]:http
services[0][port]:80
[download]

In Perl - I'm using:

@array = param('services[]');
[download]

This isn't a problem if I use a normal array - any thoughts?

Comment on CGI array with key value pairs? Select or Download Code

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Re: CGI array with key value pairs? by space_monk (Chaplain) on Apr 30, 2013 at 06:09 UTC
As a general advice, you can always use Data::Dumper to see what data structures are really coming into your module. It may also be a good idea to look at the CGI::Vars method... Updated advice: It has been pointed out that CGI::Struct is the correct way to go instead of CGI::Vars, but you still have to go through CGI::Vars before passing the result to CGI::Struct If any of my proposed solutions have minor errors, it's because I don't waste my genius on trivial matters. :-P	[reply]
Re^2: CGI array with key value pairs? by Anonymous Monk on Apr 30, 2013 at 07:41 UTC
It may also be a good idea to look at the CGI::Vars method... No, it is never a good idea to look at the legacy CGI::Vars () function, it exists solely for antiquely antique backwards compatibility , and has way too many caveats ( Problem with CGI::Vars ) CGI::Struct does the job the OP is looking for	[reply]
Re^3: CGI array with key value pairs? by space_monk (Chaplain) on Apr 30, 2013 at 11:08 UTC
Thanks for the info - I've updated my answer, If any of my proposed solutions have minor errors, it's because I don't waste my genius on trivial matters. :-P	[reply]
Re: CGI array with key value pairs? by Anonymous Monk on Apr 30, 2013 at 07:34 UTC
use CGI::Struct	[reply]
Re^2: CGI array with key value pairs? by mr007619 (Novice) on Apr 30, 2013 at 21:47 UTC
Thanks for the advice, CGI::Struct is a cool module but actually just helped me move in the right direction. If anyone is curious, I fixed this problem by modifying the server-side call to be in JSON format and decoding it on the backend. Old HTTP request: `services[0][name]:test services[0][type]:http services[0][port]:80` [download] New HTTP request: `services:[{"name":"xyz","type":"http","port":"80"},{"name":"123","type +":"http","port":"80"}]` [download] Thanks!!	[reply] [d/l] [select]