Note from Johan Vromans: There are several Digest SHA oriented modules already on CPAN. I assume you checked them?
Johan,
Yes, I've been a frequent user of the CPAN Digest modules.
The reason for submitting Digest::SHA is that the current modules contain support for byte-oriented inputs only. It would require major surgery of the underlying C code to get them to accept bit-strings (which is useful for cryptanalysis). Also, Digest::SHA supports all NIST algorithms in FIPS PUB 180-2, whereas the current modules focus on particular subsets.
I floated an RFD on comp.lang.perl.modules (RFD: SHA-1/256/384/512 Bitwise Implementation), and got a positive response thus far. So, I feel reasonably comfortable about submitting Digest::SHA.
Regards, Mark
