@node File/Listing, File/Path, File/Flock, Module List
@unnumbered parse directory listing


@unnumberedsec NAME

parse_dir - parse directory listing

@unnumberedsec SYNOPSIS

@example
use File::Listing;
for (parse_dir(@`ls -l@`)) @{
    ($name, $type, $size, $mtime, $mode) = @@$_;
    next if $type ne @'f@'; # plain file
    #...
@}
@end example

@example
# directory listing can also be read from a file
open(LISTING, "zcat ls-lR.gz|");
$dir = parse_dir(\*LISTING, @'+0000@');
@end example

@unnumberedsec DESCRIPTION

The parse_dir() routine can be used to parse directory
listings. Currently it only understand Unix @code{@'ls -l@'} and @code{@'ls -lR@'}
format.  It should eventually be able to most things you might get
back from a ftp server file listing (LIST command), i.e. VMS listings,
NT listings, DOS listings,...

The first parameter to parse_dir() is the directory listing to parse.
It can be a scalar, a reference to an array of directory lines or a
glob representing a filehandle to read the directory listing from.

The second parameter is the time zone to use when parsing time stamps
in the listing. If this value is undefined, then the local time zone is
assumed.

The third parameter is the type of listing to assume.  The values will
be strings like @'unix@', @'vms@', @'dos@'.  Currently only @'unix@' is
implemented and this is also the default value.  Ideally, the listing
type should be determined automatically.

The fourth parameter specify how unparseable lines should be treated.
Values can be @'ignore@', @'warn@' or a code reference.  Warn means that
the perl warn() function will be called.  If a code reference is
passed, then this routine will be called and the return value from it
will be incorporated in the listing.  The default is @'ignore@'.

Only the first parameter is mandatory.  The parse_dir() prototype is
($;$$$).

The return value from parse_dir() is a list of directory entries.  In
scalar context the return value is a reference to the list.  The
directory entries are represented by an array consisting of [
$filename, $filetype, $filesize, $filetime, $filemode ].  The
$filetype value is one of the letters @'f@', @'d@', @'l@' or @'?@'.  The
$filetime value is converted to seconds since Jan 1, 1970.  The
$filemode is a bitmask like the mode returned by stat().

@unnumberedsec CREDITS

Based on lsparse.pl (from Lee McLoughlin@'s ftp mirror package) and
Net::FTP@'s parse_dir (Graham Barr).

