PerlIO::gzip or PerlIO::via::gzip

Dave Howorth has asked for the wisdom of the Perl Monks concerning the following question:

PerlIO::gzip or PerlIO::via::gzip, that is the question?

I have been using PerlIO::gzip and it's come time to install the application on a new machine. I see there is now also PerlIO::via::gzip and that PerlIO::gzip has outstanding bugs and is four years old. But I've failed to find any indication as to when or whether to use one rather than the other.

Can the monks please enlighten me?

It's Monday morning and I have a cold, so my foo is not strong today. Please forgive me if I've missed something obvious.

Comment on PerlIO::gzip or PerlIO::via::gzip

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: PerlIO::gzip or PerlIO::via::gzip by Khen1950fx (Canon) on Oct 18, 2010 at 15:49 UTC
The author of PerlIO::gzip in his README says this: DON'T trust it with your data.	[reply]
Re^2: PerlIO::gzip or PerlIO::via::gzip by graff (Chancellor) on Oct 19, 2010 at 01:38 UTC
Thanks for pointing this out. I first learned about PerlIO::gzip years ago (early days of perl 5.8), and wasn't aware of PerlIO::via:gzip until now. (In general, I've used PerlIO::gzip as a convenience for reading compressed data -- not for writing -- and I've never seen any trouble, but given what the author said, it makes sense to switch.)	[reply]
Re^3: PerlIO::gzip or PerlIO::via::gzip by Dave Howorth (Scribe) on Oct 19, 2010 at 16:22 UTC
I too have used PerlIO::gzip for a number of years on many millions of files without ever seeing any sign of problems and none of the reported bugs affect me. But nobody has yet said that they've even used PerlIO::via::gzip, so my practical experience kind of balances out the author's noble warning, leaving me still uncertain. Does anybody know any more of the story here?	[reply]