Array in a hash

Anonymous Monk has asked for the wisdom of the Perl Monks concerning the following question:

Hey Wise Ones,

This is kinda a tricky question, so I'll try to word it clearly. I have a hash. This hash contains the name of files. I want to beable to load an array structure or reference into the hash value. For example

$hash{'filname'} = @array

The array structure needs to stay intact while loaded into the hash

$array[1] = "..."; $array[2] = "...";

I need to beable to call the array items through the hash, if its possible like

$hash{'filename'}[0]; $hash{'filanem'}[1]; etc...

I dont know if this is possible, or how I can make proper multi-level hashes.

Can someone please shed some light on this issue and show me the perly gates?

Thanks _{janitored by ybiC: Replaced frowned-upon <pre> tags with <code> tags, minor format tweaks for legibility.}

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Re: Array in a hash by tmoertel (Chaplain) on Oct 12, 2004 at 21:02 UTC
(Update: Addressed parent's concerns about "staying intact.") Represent the subarrays as references to arrays. Depending on what you mean by "stay intact while loaded in the hash," you'll either want to copy or "alias" the original array's contents: `$hash{'filename'} = [ @array ]; # copies array` [download] Or: `$hash{'filename'} = \@array; # "aliases" array` [download] Then you can access it like ususal: `$hash{'filename'}[0]; $hash{'filename'}[1];` [download] See perlref and perllol for more on this kind of thing. Cheers, Tom Tom Moertel : Blog / Talks / CPAN / LectroTest / PXSL / Coffee / Movie Rating Decoder	[reply] [d/l] [select]
Re^2: Array in a hash by Anonymous Monk on Oct 12, 2004 at 21:14 UTC
that worked, thanks Tom!	[reply]
Re^2: Array in a hash by Anonymous Monk on Oct 13, 2004 at 18:26 UTC
"alias" the original array's contents This is more commonly referred to as referencing. Aliasing is a slightly different concept, so using the wrong term should be avoided, especially when you are talking to a newbie.	[reply]
Re: Array in a hash by qumsieh (Scribe) on Oct 12, 2004 at 21:05 UTC
It is possible, of course. You need to read more about Perl's complex data structures. Perldsc should start you off. Hints: `$hash{filename} = \@array; print $hash{filename}[0];` [download]	[reply] [d/l]