title: What is the most efficient operator to compare any two items?
body: <p>Frequently I need to convert data from one type to another and then compare them. Some operators will convert to specific types first and this conversion may cause loss of efficiency. For instance, I may have </p>
  
  <pre><code>my $a, $b = 0, "foo"; # initial value
  $a = (3,4,5).Set;     # re-assign value
  $b = open "dataFile"; # re-assign value
  
  if $a eq $b { say "okay"; } # convert to string
  if $a == 5 { say "yes"; }   # convert to number
  if $a == $b {} # error, Cannot resolve caller Numeric(IO::Handle:D: );
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>The operators "eq" and "==" will convert data to the digestible types first and may slow things down. Will the operators "eqv" and "===" skip converting data types and be more efficient if data to be compared cannot be known in advance (i.e., you absolutely have no clue what you are going to get in advance)?</p>