Installing Perl
If you have Linux or Mac OS X you have Perl installed by default. For Windows users there are different package to choose from, but a long used and tested is ActiveState Perl. Choose the X_86 version for Windows.
Download and execute the package following the instructions. You can watch this YouTube video to have and idea: the installation process is quite straightforward.
Installing a text editor
- Under Linux you can use Gedit (in Ubuntu is under Application -> Accessories -> Text Editor). Kate is good as well.
- Under Mac OS X you can download Text Wrangler, that is available for free at the App Store.
- Under Windows you can use Crimson Editor.
Testing Perl
Open a shell terminal. (Under Windows hit Start, then choose “Run…” and type cmd in the text input, then hit Enter).
Type the “perl -v” command, without quotes, and hit enter. Is it working?