I started this so I am still fighting... $.="\nHappy birthday ";print$;="$.to you",",$;,$.dear perl5,$;.\n" 66 Characters... The "perl(5?)" can be replaced by $^X on SOME systems, for a further saving of 1 or 2 chars. Richard -- Richard@waveney.demon.co.uk ==== Want to unsubscribe from Fun With Perl? Well, if you insist... ==== Send email to <fwp-request@technofile.org> with message _body_ ==== unsubscribe