In C, you have to work with each item in itself. With Perl, you work with the whole thing at once. So, you have an idea of what you're starting and where you want to go. 
# Starting with Lastname, Firstname
# Wanting to get to FLastname
sub transform {
    my ($name) = @_;
    $name =~ s/^\s*(\S+),\s(\S)/${2}${1}/;
    return $name;
}

[download]
So, grab what you want from what you're given, transform it into what you want, then return it. It's often best to do this sort of thing in a function because it's easier to be destructive and smaller scopes give you greater flexibility. You don't have to watch out for anyone else's feelings. :-)
My criteria for good software:
  1. Does it work?
  2. Can someone else come in, make a change, and be reasonably certain no bugs were introduced?

In reply to Re: Perl 'grammar' by dragonchild
in thread Perl 'grammar' by gortok

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