# Introduction

pperl is a next-generation Perl 5 platform written in Rust, targeting Perl 5.42+ compatibility.

## Goals

- **Auto-Parallelization** - Automatic parallel `map`, `grep`, `for`, `while` loops via Rayon work-stealing
- **JIT Compilation** - Native code generation via Cranelift for hot loops (up to 76x faster than perl5)
- **Pure Perl Viability** - Fast enough that XS becomes optional

## Architecture Overview

```mermaid
flowchart LR
    subgraph Input
        A[Perl Source]
    end

    subgraph Parser
        B[Lexer] --> C[Parser]
        C --> D[AST]
    end

    subgraph Compiler
        D --> E[Codegen]
        E --> F[OpArena]
    end

    subgraph Runtime
        F --> G[Interpreter]
        G --> H[PP Dispatch]
    end

    subgraph Output
        H --> I[Result]
    end

    A --> B
```

## Quick Start

```bash
# Run a script
pperl script.pl

# Run one-liner
pperl -e 'print "Hello, World!\n"'

# Check syntax only
pperl -c script.pl
```

## Compatibility

pperl aims for high compatibility with Perl 5.42+.

## Platform Support

- **Linux only** (any architecture)
- No Windows, macOS, or other platforms