Fortran::Format version 0.53
============================

This is a Perl implementation of the Fortran 77 formatted output facility
(input will be available in a future version). One possible use is for
producing input files for old Fortran programs, making sure that their
column-oriented records are rigorously correct. Fortran formats may also have
some advantages over printf in some cases: it is very easy to output an array,
reusing the format as needed; and the syntax for repeated columns is more
concise. Unlike printf, for good or ill, Fortran-formatted fields B<never>
exceed their desired width. For example, compare

    printf "%3d", 12345;                            # prints "12345"
    print Fortran::Format->new("I3")->write(12345); # prints "***"

This implementation was written in pure Perl, with portability and correctness
in mind. It implements the full ANSI standard for Fortran 77 Formats (or at
least it should). It was not written with speed in mind, so if you need to
process millions of records it may not be what you need.

CHANGES SINCE VERSON 0.52
        - Changed t/write.t so that it ignores floating number tests unless
          $ENV{TEST_FLOAT} is set.

INSTALLATION

To install this module type the following:

   perl Makefile.PL
   make
   make test
   make install

DEPENDENCIES

None, except Test::Simple and Test::Pod for testing.

COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE

Copyright (C) 2004 Ivan Tubert <itub@cpan.org>

This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the same terms as Perl itself. 

