Path::Class::File(3) User Contributed Perl Documentation Path::Class::File(3)
NAME
Path::Class::File - Objects representing files
SYNOPSIS
use Path::Class qw(file); # Export a short constructor
my $file = file('foo', 'bar.txt'); # Path::Class::File object
my $file = Path::Class::File->new('foo', 'bar.txt'); # Same thing
# Stringifies to 'foo/bar.txt' on Unix, 'foo\bar.txt' on Windows, etc.
print "file: $file\n";
if ($file->is_absolute) { ... }
my $v = $file->volume; # Could be 'C:' on Windows, empty string
# on Unix, 'Macintosh HD:' on Mac OS
$file->cleanup; # Perform logical cleanup of pathname
my $dir = $file->dir; # A Path::Class::Dir object
my $abs = $file->absolute; # Transform to absolute path
my $rel = $file->relative; # Transform to relative path
DESCRIPTION
The "Path::Class::File" class contains functionality for manipulating
file names in a cross-platform way.
METHODS
$file = Path::Class::File->new( <dir1>, <dir2>, ..., <file> )
$file = file( <dir1>, <dir2>, ..., <file> )
Creates a new "Path::Class::File" object and returns it. The
arguments specify the path to the file. Any volume may also be
specified as the first argument, or as part of the first argument.
You can use platform-neutral syntax:
my $dir = file( 'foo', 'bar', 'baz.txt' );
or platform-native syntax:
my $dir = dir( 'foo/bar/baz.txt' );
or a mixture of the two:
my $dir = dir( 'foo/bar', 'baz.txt' );
All three of the above examples create relative paths. To create
an absolute path, either use the platform native syntax for doing
so:
my $dir = dir( '/var/tmp/foo.txt' );
or use an empty string as the first argument:
my $dir = dir( '', 'var', 'tmp', 'foo.txt' );
If the second form seems awkward, that's somewhat intentional -
paths like "/var/tmp" or "\Windows" aren't cross-platform concepts
in the first place, so they probably shouldn't appear in your code
if you're trying to be cross-platform. The first form is perfectly
fine, because paths like this may come from config files, user
input, or whatever.
$file->stringify
This method is called internally when a "Path::Class::File" object
is used in a string context, so the following are equivalent:
$string = $file->stringify;
$string = "$file";
$file->volume
Returns the volume (e.g. "C:" on Windows, "Macintosh HD:" on Mac
OS, etc.) of the object, if any. Otherwise, returns the empty
string.
$file->basename
Returns the name of the file as a string, without the directory
portion (if any).
$file->is_dir
Returns a boolean value indicating whether this object represents a
directory. Not surprisingly, "Path::Class::File" objects always
return false, and "Path::Class::Dir" objects always return true.
$file->is_absolute
Returns true or false depending on whether the file refers to an
absolute path specifier (like "/usr/local/foo.txt" or
"\Windows\Foo.txt").
$file->cleanup
Performs a logical cleanup of the file path. For instance:
my $file = file('/foo//baz/./foo.txt')->cleanup;
# $file now represents '/foo/baz/foo.txt';
$dir = $file->dir
Returns a "Path::Class::Dir" object representing the directory
containing this file.
$dir = $file->parent
A synonym for the "dir()" method.
$abs = $file->absolute
Returns a "Path::Class::File" object representing $file as an
absolute path. An optional argument, given as either a string or a
"Path::Class::Dir" object, specifies the directory to use as the
base of relativity - otherwise the current working directory will
be used.
$rel = $file->relative
Returns a "Path::Class::File" object representing $file as a
relative path. An optional argument, given as either a string or a
"Path::Class::Dir" object, specifies the directory to use as the
base of relativity - otherwise the current working directory will
be used.
$foreign = $file->as_foreign($type)
Returns a "Path::Class::File" object representing $file as it would
be specified on a system of type $type. Known types include
"Unix", "Win32", "Mac", "VMS", and "OS2", i.e. anything for which
there is a subclass of "File::Spec".
Any generated objects (subdirectories, files, parents, etc.) will
also retain this type.
$foreign = Path::Class::File->new_foreign($type, @args)
Returns a "Path::Class::File" object representing a file as it
would be specified on a system of type $type. Known types include
"Unix", "Win32", "Mac", "VMS", and "OS2", i.e. anything for which
there is a subclass of "File::Spec".
The arguments in @args are the same as they would be specified in
"new()".
$fh = $file->open($mode, $permissions)
Passes the given arguments, including $file, to "IO::File->new"
(which in turn calls "IO::File->open" and returns the result as an
"IO::File" object. If the opening fails, "undef" is returned and
$! is set.
$fh = $file->openr()
A shortcut for
$fh = $file->open('r') or die "Can't read $file: $!";
$fh = $file->openw()
A shortcut for
$fh = $file->open('w') or die "Can't write $file: $!";
$file->touch
Sets the modification and access time of the given file to right
now, if the file exists. If it doesn't exist, "touch()" will make
it exist, and - YES! - set its modification and access time to now.
$file->slurp()
In a scalar context, returns the contents of $file in a string. In
a list context, returns the lines of $file (according to how $/ is
set) as a list. If the file can't be read, this method will throw
an exception.
If you want "chomp()" run on each line of the file, pass a true
value for the "chomp" or "chomped" parameters:
my @lines = $file->slurp(chomp => 1);
$file->remove()
This method will remove the file in a way that works well on all
platforms, and returns a boolean value indicating whether or not
the file was successfully removed.
"remove()" is better than simply calling Perl's "unlink()"
function, because on some platforms (notably VMS) you actually may
need to call "unlink()" several times before all versions of the
file are gone - the "remove()" method handles this process for you.
$st = $file->stat()
Invokes "File::stat::stat()" on this file and returns a
"File::stat" object representing the result.
$st = $file->lstat()
Same as "stat()", but if $file is a symbolic link, "lstat()" stats
the link instead of the file the link points to.
AUTHOR
Ken Williams, ken@mathforum.org
SEE ALSO
Path::Class(3), Path::Class::Dir(3), File::Spec(3)
perl v5.10.0 2006-12-24 Path::Class::File(3)
Mac OS X 10.6 - Generated Thu Sep 17 20:14:35 CDT 2009