NAME
Devel::WarnGlobal - Helps track down and eliminate globals
VERSION
version 0.09
SYNOPSIS
use Devel::WarnGlobal $FOO => \&get_foo,
$BAR => [\&get_bar, \&set_bar];
use Devel::WarnGlobal::Scalar;
tie $GLOBAL, 'Devel::WarnGlobal::Scalar', { get => \&get_global };DESCRIPTION
A program full of global variables can be a mind-bending thing to debug. They come in various shapes and sizes. Some are package variables exported by default. Some are accessed directly using the '$Modulename::Global' syntax.
Most experienced programmers agree that using global variables is a Bad Thing in large programs, since they both add to the complexity of the program and can introduce subtle bugs. Globals introduce complexity because they increase the number of things that you need to keep in your head at a given time. ("What the heck is $FROBOZZ supposed to be again?") They can introduce subtle bugs because if one piece of code accidentally says
if ($THNEE = 34)when they meant to say
if ($THNEE == 34)then another piece of code miles distant could break, and you'll have to hunt through the entire program for the bug. This can be very time-consuming!
The standard remedy for rampant global variables is to write subroutines that return the information that the global is supposed to contain. For example, if you have a global like so:
$CLOWN = "Bozo";then you can instead write a subroutine like this one:
sub get_clown { return "Bozo"; }and replace all instances of $CLOWN with get_clown(). If at some point in the program we change to a different clown, you can write a set_clown() method and change any '$CLOWN = "Binky"' statements to 'set_clown("Binky")'. For the curious, one way of doing this would be:
BEGIN {
my $clown = 'Bozo';
sub get_clown () {
return $clown;
}
sub set_clown {
my ($new_clown) = @_;
$clown = $new_clown;
}
}Writing a 'set' function reintroduces some of the problems of having the global variable in the first place, since calling set_clown() in one part of the program can cause problems in a different piece of code. However, you have accomplished several good things. First, a 'set_clown' call is easier to spot than a '$CLOWN = foo' statement. Secondly, you can put access controls into set_clown() to make sure that get_clown() will always return a valid clown. And thirdly, it becomes easier to make get_clown() and set_clown() into class methods. Then you could have calls like $circus->get_clown(), making it easier to separate circus-related stuff from non-circus stuff.
Globals can be elusive. It can be hard to find them, and time-consuming to replace them all at once. Devel::WarnGlobal is designed to make the process easier. Once you've written your 'get' function, you can tie that variable to the function, and the variable will always return the value of the function. This can be valuable while testing, since it serves to verify that you've written your new 'get'-function correctly.
In order to trace down uses of the given global, Devel::WarnGlobal can provide warnings whenever the global is accessed. These warnings are on by default; they are controlled by the 'warn' parameter. Also, one can turn warnings on and off with the warn() method on the tied object. If 'die_on_write' is set, Devel::WarnGlobal will die if an attempt is made to write to a value with no 'set' method defined. (Otherwise, the 'set' method will produce a warning, but will have no affect on the value.)
As a convenience, you can tie variables in the 'use' line with Devel::WarnGlobal. Or, you can use the underlying Devel::WarnGlobal::Scalar module directly.
NAME
Devel::WarnGlobal - Track down and eliminate globals
TODO
Support for tying arrays, hashes, and filehandles
Variable-shadowing checks, so that we can monitor whether the tied variable and the subroutine stay in sync
SEE ALSO
AUTHOR
Stephen Nelson <stephenenelson@mac.com>
COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE
This software is copyright (c) 2013 by Stephen Nelson.
This is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as the Perl 5 programming language system itself.