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PERLBUG(1)	 Perl Programmers Reference Guide      PERLBUG(1)

NAME
       perlbug - how to submit bug reports on Perl

SYNOPSIS
       perlbug [ -v ] [ -a address ] [ -s subject ]
       [ -b body | -f inputfile ] [ -F outputfile ]
       [ -r returnaddress ] [ -e editor ]
       [ -c adminaddress | -C ] [ -S ] [ -t ]  [ -d ]  [ -h ]

       perlbug [ -v ] [ -r returnaddress ]
       [ -ok | -okay | -nok | -nokay ]

DESCRIPTION
       A program to help generate bug reports about perl or the
       modules that come with it, and mail them.

       If you have found a bug with a non-standard port (one that
       was not part of the standard distribution), a binary
       distribution, or a non-standard module (such as Tk, CGI,
       etc), then please see the documentation that came with
       that distribution to determine the correct place to report
       bugs.

       perlbug is designed to be used interactively. Normally no
       arguments will be needed.  Simply run it, and follow the
       prompts.

       If you are unable to run perlbug (most likely because you
       don't have a working setup to send mail that perlbug
       recognizes), you may have to compose your own report, and
       email it to perlbug@perl.com.  You might find the -d
       option useful to get summary information in that case.

       In any case, when reporting a bug, please make sure you
       have run through this checklist:

       What version of perl you are running?
	   Type perl -v at the command line to find out.

       Are you running the latest released version of perl?
	   Look at http://www.perl.com/ to find out.  If it is
	   not the latest released version, get that one and see
	   whether your bug has been fixed.  Note that bug
	   reports about old versions of perl, especially those
	   prior to the 5.0 release, are likely to fall upon deaf
	   ears.  You are on your own if you continue to use
	   perl1 .. perl4.

       Are you sure what you have is a bug?
	   A significant number of the bug reports we get turn
	   out to be documented features in perl.  Make sure the
	   behavior you are witnessing doesn't fall under that
	   category, by glancing through the documentation that
	   comes with perl (we'll admit this is no mean task,

5/Jun/2001	       perl 5.005, patch 03			1

PERLBUG(1)	 Perl Programmers Reference Guide      PERLBUG(1)

	   given the sheer volume of it all, but at least have a
	   look at the sections that seem relevant).

	   Be aware of the familiar traps that perl programmers
	   of various hues fall into.  See the perltrap manpage.

	   Check in the perldiag manpage to see what any Perl
	   error message(s) mean.  If message isn't in perldiag,
	   it probably isn't generated by Perl.	 Consult your
	   operating system documentation instead.

	   If you are on a non-UNIX platform check also the
	   perlport manpage, some features may not be implemented
	   or work differently.

	   Try to study the problem under the perl debugger, if
	   necessary.  See the perldebug manpage.

       Do you have a proper test case?
	   The easier it is to reproduce your bug, the more
	   likely it will be fixed, because if no one can
	   duplicate the problem, no one can fix it.  A good test
	   case has most of these attributes: fewest possible
	   number of lines; few dependencies on external
	   commands, modules, or libraries; runs on most
	   platforms unimpeded; and is self-documenting.

	   A good test case is almost always a good candidate to
	   be on the perl test suite.  If you have the time,
	   consider making your test case so that it will readily
	   fit into the standard test suite.

	   Remember also to include the exact error messages, if
	   any.	 "Perl complained something" is not an exact
	   error message.

	   If you get a core dump (or equivalent), you may use a
	   debugger (dbx, gdb, etc) to produce a stack trace to
	   include in the bug report.  NOTE: unless your Perl has
	   been compiled with debug info (often -g), the stack
	   trace is likely to be somewhat hard to use because it
	   will most probably contain only the function names,
	   not their arguments.	 If possible, recompile your Perl
	   with debug info and reproduce the dump and the stack
	   trace.

       Can you describe the bug in plain English?
	   The easier it is to understand a reproducible bug, the
	   more likely it will be fixed.  Anything you can
	   provide by way of insight into the problem helps a
	   great deal.	In other words, try to analyse the
	   problem to the extent you feel qualified and report
	   your discoveries.

5/Jun/2001	       perl 5.005, patch 03			2

PERLBUG(1)	 Perl Programmers Reference Guide      PERLBUG(1)

       Can you fix the bug yourself?
	   A bug report which includes a patch to fix it will
	   almost definitely be fixed.	Use the diff program to
	   generate your patches (diff is being maintained by the
	   GNU folks as part of the diffutils package, so you
	   should be able to get it from any of the GNU software
	   repositories).  If you do submit a patch, the cool-
	   dude counter at perlbug@perl.com will register you as
	   a savior of the world.  Your patch may be returned
	   with requests for changes, or requests for more
	   detailed explanations about your fix.

	   Here are some clues for creating quality patches: Use
	   the -c or -u switches to the diff program (to create a
	   so-called context or unified diff).	Make sure the
	   patch is not reversed (the first argument to diff is
	   typically the original file, the second argument your
	   changed file).  Make sure you test your patch by
	   applying it with the patch program before you send it
	   on its way.	Try to follow the same style as the code
	   you are trying to patch.  Make sure your patch really
	   does work (make test, if the thing you're patching
	   supports it).

       Can you use perlbug to submit the report?
	   perlbug will, amongst other things, ensure your report
	   includes crucial information about your version of
	   perl.  If perlbug is unable to mail your report after
	   you have typed it in, you may have to compose the
	   message yourself, add the output produced by perlbug
	   -d and email it to perlbug@perl.com.	 If, for some
	   reason, you cannot run perlbug at all on your system,
	   be sure to include the entire output produced by
	   running perl -V (note the uppercase V).

	   Whether you use perlbug or send the email manually,
	   please make your subject informative.  "a bug" not
	   informative.	 Neither is "perl crashes" nor "HELP!!!",
	   these all are null information.  A compact description
	   of what's wrong is fine.

       Having done your bit, please be prepared to wait, to be
       told the bug is in your code, or even to get no reply at
       all.  The perl maintainers are busy folks, so if your
       problem is a small one or if it is difficult to understand
       or already known, they may not respond with a personal
       reply.  If it is important to you that your bug be fixed,
       do monitor the Changes file in any development releases
       since the time you submitted the bug, and encourage the
       maintainers with kind words (but never any flames!).  Feel
       free to resend your bug report if the next released
       version of perl comes out and your bug is still present.

5/Jun/2001	       perl 5.005, patch 03			3

PERLBUG(1)	 Perl Programmers Reference Guide      PERLBUG(1)

OPTIONS
       -a      Address to send the report to.  Defaults to
	       `perlbug@perl.com'.

       -b      Body of the report.  If not included on the
	       command line, or in a file with -f, you will get a
	       chance to edit the message.

       -C      Don't send copy to administrator.

       -c      Address to send copy of report to.  Defaults to
	       the address of the local perl administrator
	       (recorded when perl was built).

       -d      Data mode (the default if you redirect or pipe
	       output).	 This prints out your configuration data,
	       without mailing anything.  You can use this with
	       -v to get more complete data.

       -e      Editor to use.

       -f      File containing the body of the report.	Use this
	       to quickly send a prepared message.

       -F      File to output the results to instead of sending
	       as an email. Useful particularly when running
	       perlbug on a machine with no direct internet
	       connection.

       -h      Prints a brief summary of the options.

       -ok     Report successful build on this system to perl
	       porters. Forces -S and -C. Forces and supplies
	       values for -s and -b. Only prompts for a return
	       address if it cannot guess it (for use with make).
	       Honors return address specified with -r.	 You can
	       use this with -v to get more complete data.   Only
	       makes a report if this system is less than 60 days
	       old.

       -okay   As -ok except it will report on older systems.

       -nok    Report unsuccessful build on this system.  Forces
	       -C.  Forces and supplies a value for -s, then
	       requires you to edit the report and say what went
	       wrong.  Alternatively, a prepared report may be
	       supplied using -f.  Only prompts for a return
	       address if it cannot guess it (for use with make).
	       Honors return address specified with -r.	 You can
	       use this with -v to get more complete data.  Only
	       makes a report if this system is less than 60 days
	       old.

5/Jun/2001	       perl 5.005, patch 03			4

PERLBUG(1)	 Perl Programmers Reference Guide      PERLBUG(1)

       -nokay  As -nok except it will report on older systems.

       -r      Your return address.  The program will ask you to
	       confirm its default if you don't use this option.

       -S      Send without asking for confirmation.

       -s      Subject to include with the message.  You will be
	       prompted if you don't supply one on the command
	       line.

       -t      Test mode.  The target address defaults to
	       `perlbug-test@perl.com'.

       -v      Include verbose configuration data in the report.

AUTHORS
       Kenneth Albanowski (<kjahds@kjahds.com>), subsequently
       doctored by Gurusamy Sarathy (<gsar@umich.edu>), Tom
       Christiansen (<tchrist@perl.com>), Nathan Torkington
       (<gnat@frii.com>), Charles F. Randall (<cfr@pobox.com>),
       Mike Guy (<mjtg@cam.a.uk>), Dominic Dunlop
       (<domo@computer.org>), Hugo van der Sanden
       (<hv@crypt0.demon.co.uk>), and Jarkko Hietaniemi
       (<jhi@iki.fi>).

SEE ALSO
       perl(1), perldebug(1), perldiag(1), perlport(1),
       perltrap(1), diff(1), patch(1), dbx(1), gdb(1)

BUGS
       None known (guess what must have been used to report
       them?)

5/Jun/2001	       perl 5.005, patch 03			5

PERLBUG(1)	 Perl Programmers Reference Guide      PERLBUG(1)

5/Jun/2001	       perl 5.005, patch 03			6

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