Since unpack returns a string, simply add a bit (pun intended) of split and you're done:

my $bin_str = unpack( "b*", $string );

print join( "\n", split( //, $bin_str ) );
[download]

Updated output:

unpack b = [10000110]
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
[download]

The following also works:

my $bin_str = unpack( "b*", $string );

print join( "\n", $bin_str =~ /(.)/g );
[download]

It avoids split plus a (magical) regexp when just a regexp will do.

It avoids split // which confuses Text::Balanced.

How does Text::Balanced enter this scenario? What's the problem?

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Jeff japhy Pinyan, P.L., P.M., P.O.D, X.S.: Perl, regex, and perl hacker
How can we ever be the sold short or the cheated, we who for every service have long ago been overpaid? ~~ Meister Eckhart