>Now I understand where you're coming from, David. You simply have the terms backward. In VFP, Protected properties can only be accessed by objects instantiated from the class they are defined in. Hidden properties can be accessed by objects instantiated from the original class or any subclass they are defined in (but not any code outside the object).

if I add a hidden property to an object, as soon as I try to subclass it, teh subclass does not even see the existance of the hidden property. Maybe you have a different version of VFP than I do? I think you goofed...?