Run a PERL program turns error

[nada2]

Hi everyone!

I'm new to linux environment and just was able to install and use Ubuntu 12.04 a month ago. Actually I need ubuntu mainly to work with linux-based bioinformatics tools. Few days ago I was able to compile the software (EIGENSOFT, downloaded from: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/alkes-price/software/) into /usr/local/bin directory. My problem now that one of the program inside this software is PERL program and when I type the syntax for it in the terminal, it returns me with this error:
bash: ../bin/ploteig: /usr/local/bin/perl: bad interpreter: No such file or directory

The program is called ploteig, and is located inside bin of the software file. Would you please help me to overcome this error? I downloaded the software in the same path of PERL.

Thanks a lot in advance!

[Lars Noodén]

The first line of a script has to point to the script's interpreter. The one provided is for a different system than Ubuntu and it appears to have perl in a slightly different location:

#!/usr/local/bin/perl  -w

That's the wrong location for a script on a Ubuntu system. With Ubuntu (or any other), you can find perl with which

which perl

That gives us /usr/bin/perl. So you can edit the first line of the ploteig script to point to where perl really is.

[nada2]

Your tip works well.

Thanks a million.. you saved my day)

[Lars Noodén]

Have fun. perl is a very flexible scripting language.