• Newer, based on netCDF-4
• Uses PDL (the Perl Data Language) with capabilities similar to Matlab and IDL.
• Installation is straightforward.
• perldl, a simple interactive shell for PDL, is available for interactive prototyping of scripts.
• Fast when dealing with large multidimensional arrays.
• Contributed by Doug Hunt, COSMIC

Annotated examples of complete Perl netCDF programs (using DL::NetCDF) are available from the program examples page.

• Installation on RedHat systems easy from RPMs.
• NetCDFPerl documentation fairly complete, just use old netCDF-2 User's Guide with small document that describes differences.
• ncmanipulate package available for modifying the schema of a netCDF file (adding, deleting, or renaming dimensions, variables, and attributes).

• Based on the old netCDF-2 C interface, need to use netCDF-2 documentation.
• Building and installing can be a challenge on new platforms.
• Developed at Unidata, but now in maintenance mode only, no further development is currently planned.

2011 Unidata NetCDF Workshop > Introduction to the NetCDF APIs and Example Programs