( my $name = $ARGV[0] ) && length $ARGV[0] > 2 or die "Usage: `$0 ` (min. 3 letters)"; #### my $name = $ARGV[0] #### && length $ARGV[0] > 2 #### while ( 1 ) { # runs forever ... } if ( 0 ) { # won't run ... } sub foo { return 'something'; # or maybe not } if ( foo() ) { # only runs if foo() returns something ... }