Hi, I would like to know the difference between: 1) POKE LONG([Handle&]), 75000 and... 2) Handle&..0& = 75000 #2 is _much_ faster. Why ? Isn't POKE totally useless ? :-D (I know I'm wrong, but why?) Also, do I need to lock the handle before using the 2nd function ? It will be called millions of times, so it must be as fast as possible and reliable. Confused optimizer, Sylvain _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com. Share information about yourself, create your own public profile at http://profiles.msn.com.