Thanks- I think I've got what I need from the messages posted back to me. One question left (to make sure I've got this right)- If I open file ( IN ,"<<cool.text") and then write out to IN, it'll append the text, and not write over the file, right? -Seraph ***** Want to unsubscribe from this list? ***** Send mail with body "unsubscribe" to mac-perl-request@iis.ee.ethz.ch