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Course Title:	Introduction to Perl
Instructor:	Richard De A'Morelli
Curriculum:	6 units, plus Syllabus and Final Exam
Time Required:	3-4 weeks
Textbooks:	None
Prerequisites:	None. All students may enroll in this course.
CEU Eligibility:	Students who pass an exam will earn 2 CEUs
Course Fee:	$16.00
Start Date:	No waiting...Enroll now and start learning today!

This course offers a gentle introduction to the popular scripting language known as Perl. Widely used on the World Wide Web, Perl scripts power a multitude of popular applications ranging from simple counters and guest books to high-end programs such as shopping carts, virtual credit card terminals and online database applications. Perl also powers interactive polls found on major sites as well as stock tickers, rotating ad banners, Web bulletin boards, and real time chat tools used daily by millions of Web surfers.

This is a beginning level class and requires no programming experience or prior knowledge of Perl. The curriculum focuses on simple basics, starting with how to download and install Perl on a desktop computer (Perl is distributed as freeware via the Internet and comes in various flavors for Windows, Mac and UNIX users.) The course will then delve into elementary programming concepts and syntax, and students will learn how to write a series of simple Perl scripts. This information will provide a solid foundation for those who would like to learn how to write fully functional Perl scripts for the World Wide Web as well as for offline or desktop computing uses.

Syllabus: Getting Started (Course Syllabus)

Unit 1: Introduction to Perl

Welcome to the Class!

A Brief History of Perl

What Exactly is Perl?

Getting Your Feet Wet

Downloading and Installing Perl

Troubleshooting Help for Windows Users

Homework Challenge

Unit 2: Getting to Know Perl

What 'Tools' Do I Need to Write Perl?

Perl Scripts, Files, Modules, and More

Let's Throw in the Whole Shebang!

Hello World! Goodbye Sanity?

What a Mess...Perl to the Rescue!

"No Comment!" Won't Get the Job Done in Perl

There's No Such Thing as the "Right" Way

Newline and Other Magic Tokens

Homework Challenge

Unit 3: A Gentle Introduction to Scalar Data

Class Notes and Quick Review

Working with Numbers and Strings

Modifying Scalars

Concatenation

Double Quoted Strings

Single Quoted Strings

Escape Characters

The qq and q Operators

Number Crunching in Perl

Homework Challenge

Unit 4: IF-ELSIF-ELSE Control Structures

Class Notes

if-elsif-else Control Structures

Numerical Operators

String Operators

Incrementing and Decrementing Numbers

Some Simple Perl Functions

Number and String Conversion

Formatting Your Perl Script

Homework Challenge

Unit 5: Lists and Arrays

Introduction to Lists and Arrays

Array Operators

The qw() Operator

Accessing Array Elements

An Array Slice

Array Boundaries

Push and Pop

Shift and Unshift

Reverse and Sort

Chomping Array Elements

Homework Challenge

Unit 6: Selection and Loop Statements

Flow of Control

'if-else-elsif' Control Blocks Revisited

'unless' It's True (or False)

'while' We're In A Loop

'until' It's True (or False)

The 'do' (or 'do while') Loop

Looping with 'for'

Looping with 'foreach'

Which Loop to Use

Looping Odd and Ends

Labels and Nested Loops

All Roads Lead to Rome

Homework Challenge

Unit 7: Final Exam

Richard De A'Morelli is a network administrator, web designer/programmer, author, and editor. He currently is Webmaster and lead programmer for KSURF Webversity, where he also teaches classes on computer technology, writing, and self-help topics.

A published author at age 16, Richard now has more than a dozen books to his credit as well as several hundred feature articles on a variety of subjects. He has served as editor of several nationally distributed magazines and was a by-lined member of the late best-selling author Irving Wallace's editorial staff.

Richard has been developing e-courses and teaching online since the 1982 when modem bulletin boards were in vogue. He built one of the first websites when many believed that the Web was a passing fad. Since then, he has written more than twenty courses, including the award-winning Exploring the Internet, which saw more than 350,000 graduates in the early days of the World Wide Web. Before the Internet, Richard had been teaching creative writing and self-help topics in a traditional classroom environment since the 1970s.

A prolific coder in Perl, Visual Basic and Javascript, Richard designed the back-end coding for a number of web sites including the original Virtual University and KSURF Knowledge Web. He has written stock analysis programs and developed a collection of widgets. He was awarded the Software Star Search award from Computer Reseller News, an industry trade magazine, for his design work on Digital Professor an innovative touchtone interactive application (well, it was innovative in 1992, before the Web changed everything!)

Richard lives with his wife on the scenic California Central Coast, where he spends his time surfing the Web, programming, and writing. His leisure interests include woodworking and local politics. He is active in land use and planning issues affecting the small community he calls home.

Enroll and start learning today! All course materials will be available when you start the class, so you don't have to wait for weekly lessons and you can truly learn at your own pace. You don't have to be online at any set time; study at your leisure from the comfort or your home or office.

The course curriculum will include tutorial lessons, suggested readings, and optional homework activities. If you are taking the class for enjoyment or self-enrichment, homework is optional but participation is encouraged. Students who approach online learning as an adventure and actively participate will derive the most benefit and enjoyment from online learning. Homework projects, if completed satisfactorily, will earn Extra Credit points which will be added to your Final Exam score and may increase the overall grade you earn in the course.

The Student Handbook provides useful information on how to make the most of your online learning experience at KSURF's Virtual University. Refer to this guide for helpful tips on how to access classrooms, post homework, and answers to most frequently asked questions.