Check out IPC::System::Simple. It's brand new, but it simplifies stuff like this (and much more).

If you check the system page, you'll see that you (probably) need to use the $?... 

    if ($? == -1) {
    print "failed to execute: $!\n";
    }
    elsif ($? & 127) {
    printf "child died with signal %d, %s coredump\n",
        ($? & 127),  ($? & 128) ? 'with' : 'without';
    }
    else {
    printf "child exited with value %d\n", $? >> 8;
    }

[download]

... I'm no expert on the topic, and you apparently need to be one, but I think you'll looking for $? >> 8.

UPDATE: I definitely did think the retval from system() was the same as $?, but the example in the docs showed $?, so that's what I quoted. Really, I was trying to plug IPC::System::Simple and that was my main thesis. I'd like to see that module get really popular. It's neat. If I recall correctly, he (the ISS author) says you do need to check $? for some reason. Maybe I read it on perlbuzz. Maybe I made it up.

-Paul

In reply to Re: Returned Code by jettero
in thread Returned Code by azaria

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