Just as '$fh_in' is the file handle for input, '$fh_out' is the file handle for output. The print function checks its first argument (the first thing that comes after the word "print"), and if this arg turns out to be a file handle, then the rest of the args are printed to that file; if the first arg after "print" is not a file handle, then print assumes 'STDOUT' (the default output file handle) and prints all its args to that "file" (which is usually your terminal window).