The way I usually do this sort of thing is place the following in the base class:

package BaseClass;
use base 'CGI::Application';

sub cgiapp_init {
    my $self = shift;
    $self->run_modes('mode1_common' => \&mode1_common,
             'mode2_common' => \&mode2_common);
}
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Then in the derived class I have the standard:

package DerivedClass;
use base 'BaseClass';

sub setup {
    my $self = shift;
    $self->start_mode('start');
    $self->run_modes([qw(derived_mode1 derived_mode2)]);
}
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As the CGI::Application documentation for cgiapp_init states:

If implemented, this method is called automatically right before the setup() method is called. This method provides an optional initialization hook, which improves the object-oriented character- istics of CGI::Application. The cgiapp_init() method receives, as its parameters, all the arguments which were sent to the new() method.

that's the key. i missed that in the docs.

i've been using cgiapp_prerun .. but not cgiapp_init

package FlierReports;

use strict;
use Data::Dumper;

use base qw/ FlierFunctions /;

sub setup {

        my $self = shift;

        # Setup the run mode stuff
        $self->start_mode( 'openOrders' );
        $self->mode_param( 'rm' );
        $self->run_modes(
                openOrders      => 'openOrderSummary',
                detail          => 'openOrderDetail',
                markDone        => 'markFinished',

        );

}
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Do that in every class and everything will "just work".

i guess i didn't read them carefully enough.

i read through them to see new stuff, and yes, unfortunately for me, got 'cargo cult' in some stuff ... previous incarnations of apps i've inherited use subrefs.