Perl terms starting with E

23 terms

eclectic Derived from many sources. Some would say too many.
element (EH-leh-ment) A basic part of a whole. In chemistry, refers to a simple substance that cannot be broken down into smaller parts or changed into another…
embedding When something is contained in something else, particularly when that might be considered surprising: "I've embedded a complete Perl interpreter in my…
empty subclass test The notion that an empty "derived class" should behave exactly like its "base class".
en passant When you change a "value" as it is being copied. [From French, "in passing", as in the exotic pawn-capturing maneuver in chess.]
encapsulation Any method packaging an enzyme or bacterium and maintaining its normal functions. Used to immobilize cells in a bioreactor.
endian See "little-endian" and "big-endian".
Environment All the natural and living things around us. The earth, air, weather, plants, and animals all make up our environment.
environment variable A mechanism by which some high-level agent such as a user can pass its preferences down to its future offspring (child processes, grandchild processes…
EOF End of File. Sometimes used metaphorically as the terminating string of a "here document".
errno The error number returned by a "syscall" when it fails. Perl refers to the error by the name $! (or $OS_ERROR if you use the English module).
error Error The difference between a measured value of a quantity and its true value. Different types of errors are inherent to observations.
escape sequence See "metasymbol".
exception the temporary suspension of some essential element of a policy, procedure, or requirement caused by circumstances that are expected to return to normal at…
exception handling The way a program responds to an error. The exception handling mechanism in Perl is the eval operator.
exec To throw away the current "process"'s program and replace it with another without exiting the process or relinquishing any resources held (apart from the…
executable file A "file" that is specially marked to tell the "operating system" that it's okay to run this file as a program. Usually shortened to "executable".
Execute To complete; to sign; to carry out according to its terms.
execute bit The special mark that tells the operating system it can run this program. There are actually three execute bits under Unix, and which bit gets used…
exit status See "status".
export Data extracted or taken out of one environment or application usually in a prescribed format, and usually for import into another environment or…
expression A combination of operands and operators that produces a resulting value. Expressions have a resulting type, that affects the context in which they may be…
extension The short single-stranded stretch of nucleotides remaining on a double-stranded DNA molecule, following treatment with a restriction endonuclease which…