my $delim = qr/\|/;
my $line = "a||c|\t|  |d||e";
my @fields = split($delim, $line);

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The qr operator quotes and compiles its STRING as a regular expression.
split splits on a pattern (regex).

update:

Added explanation.

In reply to Re^4: identifying null fields in bar delimited records by wfsp
in thread identifying null fields in bar delimited records by jjohhn

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