You can try starting with a "templated" filename and increment it until you get past all the existing files:

my $fn = "output000"; $fn++ while -e $fn;

At that point, you'll have a filename that is just past the last one of that pattern. Minor caveat: make sure you have enough zeroes at the end of the template - or you'll start incrementing the characters. Yes, really.

ben@feynman:~$ perl -wle'$number = "one"; $number++ for 1..3624; print + $number' two

:)

-- 
I hate storms, but calms undermine my spirits.
 -- Bernard Moitessier, "The Long Way"

In reply to Re^3: incrementing the file by oko1
in thread incrementing the file by abcdefg

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