The document proposes that instead of marketing Perl to gain more programmers, the community should become more exclusive like a secret society called the Perl Masons. It suggests the community have secret monthly meetings where arcane Perl knowledge is passed on, obscure websites, and increased coolness by being underground and exclusive with a secret handshake. The document argues this would be better than mainstream popularity and gaining more programmers, both good and bad.

1. The Perl Community - A Modest Proposal

2. Marketing

3. Mark Keating

4. Marketing

5. Why?

6. More Perl Programmers

7. Is this a good idea?

8. Think about it

9. 1995

10. Matt's Script Archive

11. More Perl Programmers

12. More Bad Perl Programmers

13. Is popularity what we really want?

14. Average IQ of a community is inversely proportional to number of members of that community

15. Perl Mongers

16. Monger

17. 1: (UK) A dealer in a specific commodity, normally used in combination “costermonger”

18. 2: A person promoting something undesirable, always used in combination “warmonger”

19. Perl Monks

20. Let's look elsewhere

24. Perl Masons

25. Popularity

26. Popularity

27. Exclusivity

28. Secret Society

29. Membership by invitation only

30. Larry as Grand Master

31. Secret monthly meetings

32. Arcane knowledge passed on

33. Obscure web sites

34. The Perl Foundation goes underground

35. Acme::Bleach

36. Secret handshake

37. Increased cool factor

38. £€$ (€

39. You know it makes sense

40. Say No to Perl marketing

41. Say Yes to Perl Masons

42. The first rule of Perl Club ...

43. Dave Cross [email_address] @davorg