There's cpzero.prg in the Tools\Cpzero subdirectory. You can use it to set a codepage of a table(s) w/o opening them. You'll have to do it only once. Check also SET CPDIALOG command

>you're right. thank you. i will try it your way.
>
>One more thing..
>
>I changed the code page of the table that contains the data I am converting to the text file.
>Would this effect using the COPY TO and format of the text file I am creating?
>
>The tables came from a project created with foxpro for windows version 2.6a.
>When I rolled the project up to vfp 9 sp2, and ran it, i kept getting prompted to select a code page for these tables.
>
>So I set the code page of these tables in the code.
>I selected the code page on the tables to 1252
>
>*!* **********************************************************
>*!* USE ALLTRIM('c:\ops\init\pretnew.dbf') IN 0 ALIAS pretnew
>*!* SELECT pretnew
>*!* COPY TO 'c:\ops\init\pretnew1.dbf' WITH cdx as 1252
>*!* USE
>*!*
>*!* **********************************************************
>