Update: Yes, I am worried about the parameters showing up when someone runs 'ps'. It is a matter of complete indifference to me if users can merely tell that I am running Perl behind the scenes. The suggestion that I use environmental variables sounds promising. My understanding is as follows:

• My understanding is that if a Korn shell sets an environmental variable and then calls a Perl script the environmental variable will be visible to the Perl script.
• The same is true in reverse. If a Perl script sets an environmental variable and then exits then the Korn script that called the Perl script can also see that environmental variable.
• Also, if a Korn shell script sets an environmental variable then only someone logged in as that user can see the variable.
• Finally, concurrent users will not confuse the shell. Each environmental variable will exist only within the process that called it.

As they say at the Paris Perlmongers meetings, 'N'est-ce que pas?" Is what I have said about environmental variables in Korn and Perl true?

Recursive Update: Clearly there is more involved here than simply swapping environmental variables to and from Korn and Perl. Therefore, the best solution given the user requirement to provide a Korn shell function is simply to do the whole shmear in Korn.

By the way, it occurred to me that the Korn shell would have had more success as a scripting language if the developer had named it something imaginative like 'Tortilla'.