Hi all, Quick question: What would be the most efficient way (apart from a simple search) of testing if a sortable key exist in a hash AND (here's the real question ) if it doesn't to get the next highest one. So, 
%hash = ('1' => cat',
'3'=> 'mouse',
'5'=>'whale'
);

if $hash{2} defined then return $hash{2} 
else
return next element sorted by hash key, in this case, $hash{3}

[download]
without going through all the trouble of making a for loop to check each element after '2' until find one defined. Thanks for the help Vince

In reply to retrieve next avaiable element in sorted hash by vinforget

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