[plug] [Fwd: PERL query]

[Peter Wright]

On Wed, Dec 22, 1999 at 02:40:14PM +0800, Michael Holland wrote:
> On Wed, 22 Dec 1999, Bret Busby wrote:
> > I want to know whether PERL code that is used as a front end to a
> > database, can be hidden from a client, or a client's systems
> > administrator, when the application is stored and run on the
> > client's machine.
> 
> Dont worry, Perl is like assembly code. Your client will have no
> hope of understanding, let alone modifying it. Perl belongs to that
> class of languages known as "write-only".

Now, now.... (spot the Python fan :-)

More seriously, I don't think there are many good ways to hide Perl
code from the user.

Depending on how complicated the script is, you may be able to use the
Perl "compiler" to translate it into C and compile that. I've had
fairly limited success using the 5.005 Perl->C compiler though.

Of course I was mainly trying to use it to compile Perl/Tk scripts,
which was probably pushing it a bit :). If it's just a simple CGI
script you should be fine.

The executable will probably be quite big, though, as I think it needs
to build in the entire Perl interpreter (unless you've got a Perl
shared library on your system (libperl.so) in which case it can
dynamically link to that).

> regards, Mike.

Try

$ perldoc perlfaq3 

and

$ perldoc B::CC

for more information.

Pete.
-- 
http://cygnus.uwa.edu.au/~pete/

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