Accessing the Ensembl data with Perl

Do you know a bit of Perl? Ensembl hosts an API (Application Programmers Interface) which uses Object-Oriented Perl to extract data from Ensembl databases. This API is public and can be used for people to programmatically access the data in the Ensembl database. We understand that not everyone is used to Object-Oriented code, although people may have basic Perl skills and be interested in using our datasets. For that kind of bioinformaticist, I would recommend a recent short read in O'Reilly's Broadcast:

Beginners Introduction to Object-Oriented Programming with Perl - O'Reilly Broadcast

And for the more advanced readers, the classic reference book in OO-Perl would be Damian Conway's Object Oriented Perl, which a part from being very informative, has a really cool cover :-)

We are always trying to lower the barrier to entry for research communities interested in using the Ensembl database in programmatic ways that make use of all the complexity associated with the generation of our data. That's why our API is public and well-documented. You can learn about our API by attending on of our API workshops for free (e.g.: 1-3 December - Univ. Cambridge, UK). We are currently trying to smooth things out even more, working on ways to make it even easier to download all that's needed to use the API and have the example scripts running in your computer with the minimum number of steps. Keep tuned for news in this respect soon...