Anyhow, It is very odd that if the -w or -a is in the shebang then there is no error in the browser.

This usually means that you're uploading changed versions from Windows to Unix through FTP and have (no) line ending conversion. The trailing Windows newline throws the kernel off and it can't launch Perl. So always use #!.../perl -w at the top of your script.

You talking in prose about what you did and making vague remarks as to what you might have put where in general does not help us (and by extension, you) debugging your problem. Show a self-contained concrete example that exhibits the problem and is shorter than 20 lines. This allows us to give you a concrete diagnosis and helps us to help you better.

Also, please tell us which message you get from where - the browser, the error log, the access log or the console.