You are using the term "readable code" without clearly defining it. I think "maintainable code" is far more important. Some of the things that help make code "maintainable" are:

• Sound domain abstractions.
• Wise program decomposition.
• Highly cohesive, loosely coupled modules.
• Descriptive, explanatory, consistent and regular names.
• Minimizing the exposure of implementation details. Minimizing the use of global data.
• Minimizing the scope of variables, pragmas, etc. Avoiding action at a distance.
• Avoiding duplication (DRY).
• Encapsulation.
• Interfaces that are: consistent; easy to use correctly; hard to use incorrectly; easy to read, maintain and extend; clearly documented; appropriate to your audience.
• Useful commenting and documentation.
• Components that are testable in isolation. Comprehensive test suites.
• Avoiding unnecessary cleverness (encapsulating and commenting it when cleverness is required).
• Establishing a rational error handling policy and following it strictly.
• Logging effectively. Logging enough information to trouble-shoot customer problems without the need to attach a debugger.
• Checking the result of all file operations, API calls and external commands, and handling unexpected results.
• Consistent code layout.
• Avoiding "big arse" functions.
• Avoiding magic numbers.

Perl doesn't stop me doing any of this. Indeed, it nicely supports all of the above points IMHO. Note that a more subjectively "readable" programming language does not somehow magically prevent you from violating any of the above points. Personally, I have little interest in cosmetic issues, such as whether one prefers forced indentation (a la Python) or considers Perl's regex syntax or use of $ in variable names "ugly" or "line noise", for that is just personal (subjective) preference and has little to do with writing maintainable code.

See also:

• On Coding Standards and Code Reviews (covers what I consider important in writing maintainable code).
• reddit post about python "readability"
• chromatic blog about readability
• Re: Some Help for a Report About Perl (Readability vs Maintainability References) (update)

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