This sounds like you're doing some sort of error-logging and reporting. There are a number of good ways to do this, many of them on CPAN. I'd go take a look there, first.

Secondly, a few general coding suggestions. 

    my $error = $s->error
      if ($count > 0);
    ## log this action
    &log_action('error')
      if ($count > 0);

[download]
This would be better written as 
if ($count > 0) {
    my $error = $s->error;
    &log_action('error', $error);
}

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This way, it's obvious that the two actions take place at the same time. Now, if you never need to use $error again, I would reccomend doing something like 
    &log_action('error', $s->error)
        if ($count > 0);

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Another thing - your variable names need improvement. Right now, you know what $s and $i do. But, will you in six months? Maybe rewrite log_action() as such 
sub log_action {
    my ($action_type, $string) = @_;

    if (lc($action_type) eq 'error') {
        print "\n$string\n\n";
        print FH "$format $string\n";
    
...
}

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In addition, I would look at passing the filehandle into the log_action() sub-routine. Maybe, use IO::File to create a reference to a filehandle and pass it around. This way, log_action() knows as little as possible about its world, making it possible to move it around to new scripts you might write. (Maybe, you might even look at putting log_action() into its own module, with a few other error-logging routines?)

------
We are the carpenters and bricklayers of the Information Age.

Don't go borrowing trouble. For programmers, this means Worry only about what you need to implement.

In reply to Re: passing a variable from one subroutine to another by dragonchild
in thread passing a variable from one subroutine to another by c

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