in reply to •Re: array index -1 oddity
in thread array index -1 oddity

Really? That strikes me as a little odd and counter-intuitive. There are instances where having an array index of -1 (or -2 or -3) are quite useful. In particular, some numerical methods come to mind. I suppose that if I felt like doing that, I would need to modify a magic variable first? Like $[ if I read man perlvar correctly.

Scott
Project coordinator of the Generic Model Organism Database Project

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•Re: Re: •Re: array index -1 oddity
by merlyn (Sage) on Dec 06, 2002 at 20:01 UTC
    Maybe you missed this statement in perldata: 
      Variable names
    Perl has three built-in data types: scalars, arrays of scalars, and
    associative arrays of scalars, known as "hashes". Normal arrays are
    ordered lists of scalars indexed by number, starting with 0 and with
    negative subscripts counting from the end. Hashes are unordered
    collections of scalar values indexed by their associated string key.

    -- Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker
    Be sure to read my standard disclaimer if this is a reply.

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