A minor note regarding modifying the $/ variable. While it is useful for slurping a file, it is best done with local inside a code block to minimize any possible problems later on in the script. e.g.,

{
    local undef $/;
    while (<MYINPUTFILE>) {
        ...
    }
}
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That way the changes are limited to that block only. Very useful when messing with the special variables.