Well, it's the time of year when word games are popular. Here's the results
of my researches with perl and a 70,000 word dictionary. Any improvements
from people with larger dictionaries are welcome! Devising the appropriate
perl scripts is left as an exercise for the reader :-)

One each of all vowels (including y) in order:  abstemiously

Word which appears last in an anagram dictionary (sort the letters in
each word, then sort the words): tutu or tux (anyone know what "tux" means?)

Longest word with letters in alphabetical order: billowy

Longest "palindromic" word: deified or reviver or rotator

Longest word consisting of two equal components: beriberi or froufrou

Longest word with no repeated letters: ambidextrously

Longest word which is also a word when read backwards: stressed

Email any improvements/additions and I'll summarise!

                Martin.

IMNSFHO this proves my point about the appropriateness of postings here.

Ward's article is the least appropriate comp.lang.perl article ever. Tom
and Randal will scream ``He said perl so it's fine for comp.lang.perl!''
How foolish.

Not that it's Ward's fault: he was only continuing a thread that was
almost entirely inappropriate from the start. Sticking to the original
group is better than switching to another inappropriate group.

I return to this discussion because I really am interested in the Perl
language and would love to read a group dedicated to it. Unfortunately,
people aren't using this group that way. So I propose that we remove
this group and make a new group, comp.lang.perl, in which postings
irrelevant to the Perl language will not be tolerated.

I am also interested in the possible quality of system software, be it
in C, sh, Perl, or whatever language. Unfortunately, people don't seem
to realize that there are source groups on USENET, and that C software
belongs in those groups, not comp.lang.c. So I propose that the monthly
posting here include short pointers to the source groups.

Finally, I find that general programming problems only distract from
intelligent language discussions. So I propose that the monthly posting
here also point people to comp.misc and the particular programming
groups.

---Dan

:Well, it's the time of year when word games are popular. Here's the results
:of my researches with perl and a 70,000 word dictionary. Any improvements
:from people with larger dictionaries are welcome! Devising the appropriate
:perl scripts is left as an exercise for the reader :-)

Ah come on, pleeeeease be so kind as to post them -- they sound neat.
I've a larger dictionary --  I'll run your script through them.  I'll
bet their good examples of how to do word-game things in perl, too.

--tom
--

"With a kernel dive, all things are possible, but it sure makes it hard
 to look at yourself in the mirror the next morning."  -me

I*M*NSFHO this is quite alright.

Why? What's the matter with showing what a perl application can do in
comp.lang.perl?

Irrelevant to the Perl language? He USED the perl language to create this
word list. "Will not be tolerated?" What, and make comp.lang.perl moderated?
It's just fine the way it is.

That sounds like a good idea. Yes it would be neat for other people who don't
read comp.lang.perl to see the program, but that does not have to mean that
it cannot be brought up here.

What if the guy who has the "general programming problem" doesn't think its
general? What if he wants input from people who use perl for his program?
He might get a more general response from comp.misc (then again, his letter
might be ignored in the numerous flamefest threads), but that should not
preclude him from posting here.

                        -Kartik

--
(I need a new .signature -- any suggestions?)

| >Ward's article is the least appropriate comp.lang.perl article ever. Tom
| >and Randal will scream ``He said perl so it's fine for comp.lang.perl!''
| >How foolish.
|
| Why? What's the matter with showing what a perl application can do in
| comp.lang.perl?

Before people put words in my mouth, please let me point out that I
anxiously read Ward's article for the actual Perl code that made the
observations, and finding none, felt a bit ripped off.  That did also
make the article "off-charter" for me.  Ward, consider that a request
and a piece of advice. :-)

ObPerl: print "Just another Perl hacker,"
--
/=Randal L. Schwartz, Stonehenge Consulting Services (503)777-0095 ==========\
| on contract to Intel's iWarp project, Beaverton, Oregon, USA, Sol III      |

\=Cute Quote: "Intel: putting the 'backward' in 'backward compatible'..."====/