Considering the modules you've already listed, it sounds like you're doing at least some web-related/CGI work with Perl. If that's the case, I'd definitely insist on getting intimate with at least one templating system. I use HTML::Template, but I know that Template Toolkit and Text::Template are also among the most popular. Separating layout control from code control is a good paradigm. And if you happen to be collaborating with designers, it also keeps them happy (and out of your code). I finally started into templating about 6 months ago and have never looked back. It's the easiest step you can take to make your CGI applications more maintainable and less ad-hoc. Search around the monastary for 'templating systems' or similar terms -- there a lot of great templating solutions out there, as you'll see, and everyone has his or her favorite.

For DBI work, I also consider a module such as Class::DBI to be a near-essential. I use a self-rolled equivalent of this module, and it makes interfacing with the data much friendlier. Unless you are doing very complicated database querying, Class::DBI will make coding much faster.

These are pretty basic modules that even unexperienced Perlers should be able to handle nicely. I've never used Config::General or Parse::RecDescent personally, but I hear other monks bring them up all the time, so you may find these useful as well. These are the only general-purpose modules I can think of off the top of my head, but I'm sure you'll get a ton of additional replies to this good question.

blokhead

In reply to Re: Essential Perl Modules by blokhead
in thread Essential Perl Modules by Steve_p

Title:
Use:  <p> text here (a paragraph) </p>
and:  <code> code here </code>
to format your post, it's "PerlMonks-approved HTML":


  • Posts are HTML formatted. Put <p> </p> tags around your paragraphs. Put <code> </code> tags around your code and data!
  • Titles consisting of a single word are discouraged, and in most cases are disallowed outright.
  • Read Where should I post X? if you're not absolutely sure you're posting in the right place.
  • Please read these before you post! —
  • Posts may use any of the Perl Monks Approved HTML tags:
    a, abbr, b, big, blockquote, br, caption, center, col, colgroup, dd, del, details, div, dl, dt, em, font, h1, h2, h3, h4, h5, h6, hr, i, ins, li, ol, p, pre, readmore, small, span, spoiler, strike, strong, sub, summary, sup, table, tbody, td, tfoot, th, thead, tr, tt, u, ul, wbr
  • You may need to use entities for some characters, as follows. (Exception: Within code tags, you can put the characters literally.)
            For:     Use:
    & &amp;
    < &lt;
    > &gt;
    [ &#91;
    ] &#93;
  • Link using PerlMonks shortcuts! What shortcuts can I use for linking?
  • See Writeup Formatting Tips and other pages linked from there for more info.