Hi Harry.

>1 How do I force a label to update when it is on the form but not on the page?

How about ThisForm.Label1.Caption =
>
the 'refresh' of the pageframe doesn't update the message immediately. I find that the only way I can achieve the immediate update to the message is to set a variable which is updated with the deleted status of the record each time the pointer moves. This is a much more clumsy and code intensive solution. What should I be doing?
>
If your are using a label here, how about ThisForm.Label1.Caption = IIF(DELETED(),"DELETED","")

>2. I have a simple form setup to ask questions of the user (eg 'Confirm - Exit the Program?')
>The problem is that I can't seem to get the program to stop and read the input. It does the form and carries on regardless.

If you want execution to stop and wait for input at that form, you need to make the form modal. (WindowType = 1 under the other tab in the properties sheet)

>If we then press a button (eg 'Yes' to confirm exit) then despite capturing the variable I need, the program doesn't return, from the line 'do form choicewin.scx'. to the line after that in my program! Instead it goes straight to the 'read events' line in the main program loop.

You need to issue a CLEAR EVENTS at this point.

As for your other questions, I haven't a clue this early int he morning. Whil Hentzen's Programming Visual Foxpro 3.0 is a wonderful how-to book for people coming from a 2.x background. It really helped me a lot when I started in VFP. 95% of it still applies to 5.0. I would also suggest the Hackers guide by Granor and Roche.

Marcia