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perl-AutoLoader - AutoLoader - load subroutines only on demand
- Description:
The AutoLoader module works with the AutoSplit module and the __END__
token to defer the loading of some subroutines until they are used
rather than loading them all at once.
To use AutoLoader, the author of a module has to place the definitions
of subroutines to be autoloaded after an __END__ token. (See perldata.)
The AutoSplit module can then be run manually to extract the definitions
into individual files auto/funcname.al.
AutoLoader implements an AUTOLOAD subroutine. When an undefined subroutine
in is called in a client module of AutoLoader, AutoLoader's AUTOLOAD
subroutine attempts to locate the subroutine in a file with a name related
to the location of the file from which the client module was read.
As an example, if POSIX.pm is located in /usr/local/lib/perl5/POSIX.pm,
AutoLoader will look for perl subroutines POSIX in /usr/local/lib/perl5/auto/POSIX/*.al,
where the .al file has the same name as the subroutine, sans package.
If such a file exists, AUTOLOAD will read and evaluate it, thus (presumably)
defining the needed subroutine. AUTOLOAD will then goto the newly defined subroutine.
Once this process completes for a given function, it is defined, so future
calls to the subroutine will bypass the AUTOLOAD mechanism.
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