Ok, modified thus: 
sub rand_element (\@);

@array = ([1,3,5], [2,4,6]);  # [keys], [values]
($k,$v) = rand_element(@array);

sub rand_element (\@) {
  my $aref = shift;
  my $idx = rand @{$aref->[0]};
  my ($k,$v) = ($aref->[0][$idx], $aref->[1][$idx]);
  my @last = (pop @{$aref->[0]}, pop @{$aref->[1]});
  ($aref->[0][$idx],$aref->[1][$idx]) = @last
    if $idx < @{$aref->[0]};
  return ($k,$v);
}

[download]
While not tested, I do belive it works -- the code has been changed only to allow for the different structure.

Thanks again, tye/Tye.

$monks{japhy}++ while $posting;

In reply to Re: (tye)Re2: Efficient random hash stuff by japhy
in thread Efficient random hash stuff by japhy

Title:
Use:  <p> text here (a paragraph) </p>
and:  <code> code here </code>
to format your post, it's "PerlMonks-approved HTML":


  • Posts are HTML formatted. Put <p> </p> tags around your paragraphs. Put <code> </code> tags around your code and data!
  • Titles consisting of a single word are discouraged, and in most cases are disallowed outright.
  • Read Where should I post X? if you're not absolutely sure you're posting in the right place.
  • Please read these before you post! —
  • Posts may use any of the Perl Monks Approved HTML tags:
    a, abbr, b, big, blockquote, br, caption, center, col, colgroup, dd, del, details, div, dl, dt, em, font, h1, h2, h3, h4, h5, h6, hr, i, ins, li, ol, p, pre, readmore, small, span, spoiler, strike, strong, sub, summary, sup, table, tbody, td, tfoot, th, thead, tr, tt, u, ul, wbr
  • You may need to use entities for some characters, as follows. (Exception: Within code tags, you can put the characters literally.)
            For:     Use:
    & &amp;
    < &lt;
    > &gt;
    [ &#91;
    ] &#93;
  • Link using PerlMonks shortcuts! What shortcuts can I use for linking?
  • See Writeup Formatting Tips and other pages linked from there for more info.