Be that as it may, I just dropped 4 up-votes on this thread today, and bookmarked it on my browser.   Excellent information.   The OP’s right.

“Contexts” (scalar, array, etc.) in Perl are one of its rather peculiar features ... full of traps sometimes for the unwary, especially when there isn’t a warning to alert you to their presence.   But the support provided by this community is excellent indeed.