You could do something like this - instead of using hash %uref,
you could create a reference to an anonymous hash, and then use
that reference to 1) refer to hash elements, *AND* 2) to pass
to inc::db::GetUser - something like this:
caller
------
$uref = {}; ### produces a *reference* to an anonymous array
$uref = inc::db::GetUser($val1, $uref);
print "User's Name is $uref->{FIRST_NAME}";
and GetUser might look like this:
---------------------------------
@UserCache; # Place to store data already seen
sub GetUser
{
my ($id, $user_hashref)=@_; # record number and hash reference to populate
if (defined($UserCache[$id])) {
return $UserCache[$id];
}
# Code here to read info from the database and put it in
# $user as necessary
# Store the info from the DB for later
$UserCache[$id] = $user_hashref;
return $user_hashref;
}
You get the idea - since the $user_hashref is lexically scoped
with "my" in subroutine GetUser, you need to be sure the reference
to the hash makes it out of the subroutine and back to the calling
code.
HTH.
--
Hardy Merrill
Mission Critical Linux, Inc.
http://www.missioncriticallinux.com
Tomasi, Chuck [[EMAIL PROTECTED]] wrote:
> I'm trying to maintain a cache of hashes to reduce database hits. What I
> want is to determine if I've retrieved the data from the DB before, if so,
> just pass back the copy of information used last time, otherwise read it
> from the DB and make a note of it. It would seem I'm not copying the
> information in to the $user arg properly. Something like this:
>
> @UserCache; # Place to store data already seen
> sub GetUser
> {
> my ($id, $user)=@_; # record number and hash reference to
> populate
>
> if (defined($UserCache[$id])) {
>
> $user = $UserCache[$id];
> return(1);
> }
>
>
> # Code here to read info from the database and put it in $user as
> necessary
>
> # Store the info from the DB for later
> $UserCache[$id] = $user;
>
> return 1;
> }
>
> I've verified $user gets populated properly when data comes from the
> database (fields are populated individually) and I've also verified that
> data is being stored in @UserCache properly on subsequent hits, but it isn't
> getting from $UserCache[$id] in to $user as expected and I don't know why.
> Do I need to fill up $user fields individually when retrieving from the
> cache? Has anyone done anything like this before?
>
> Thanks
>
> --Chuck
