LPM: Problems with text::template

[David Pitts]

You are exactly correct....

Thanks,

David
David Pitts
President, Pitts Technical Resources, Inc
(859) 552-3262
www.dpitts.com
dpitts at mk.net
----- Original Message -----
From: "David Hempy" <hempy at ket.org>
To: <lexington-pm-list at happyfunball.pm.org>
Sent: Wednesday, June 21, 2000 10:12 PM
Subject: Re: LPM: Problems with text::template


> At 09:50 PM 6/21/2000 -0400, you wrote:
> >So are you suggesting that my template should look more like this:
> >
> ><!-- Begin News Text -->
> >Get news here:  {$news=&getnews;print $news;''}
> ></td>
> ><!-- End News Text -->
>
>
> No...you had the template just right:
>
>
> <!-- Begin News Text -->
> Get news here:  {&getnews;}
> </td>
> <!-- End News Text -->
>
>
>
> I'm guessing your sub currently looks something like this:
>
> sub getnews {
>          my ($news) = "Just another perl hacker";
>          print $news;
> }
>
> It should look more like this:
>
> sub getnews {
>          my ($news) = "Just another perl hacker";
>          return $news;
> }
>
>
>
> When Text::Template evaluates the contents of {...}, it (usually*) takes
> the result of that expression and substitutes it in the final
> output.  After it is done processing the whole template, including all
> embedded expressions, it returns the grand product back to you for you to
> print or save or otherwise admire (unless you told it to send it somewhere
> else, like STDOUT).
>
> So, if you go print stuff in your subroutine before Text::Template
> completes its thing, your subroutine's output will be printed long before
> the template's output is even ready to be printed.
>
>
> Hope this helps,
> -dave
>
> -----
>
> * The expression's return value is discarded by Text::Template if you use
> the variable $OUT in the expression.  If $OUT has a value, it is included
> in the output instead of the return value.  This lets you be lazy and say:
>
> {
>          foreach $gift (sort keys %gifts) {
>                  $OUT .= "Thanks for the $gift.<br>";
>          }
> }
>
> ...instead of:
>
> {
>          my $thanks;
>
>          foreach $gift (sort keys %gifts) {
>                  $thanks .= "Thanks for the $gift.<br>";
>          }
>
>          return $thanks;
> }
>
> This alleviates you from having to say "my $thanks" and leave the "return
> $thanks;".  This comes up often enough when you have a loop in your code
> that it is really handy.
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> David Hempy
> Internet Database Administrator
> Kentucky Educational Television
> <hempy at ket.org> -- (606)258-7164 -- (800)333-9764
>
>