that's exactly what i was looking for - many thanks Thomas. the issue craig brought up has me a little concerned so i have opted to change
the bckg colors so the cursor is more visible - i did pass on your instructions to users since it is not something i can do within my area of access - maybe they will get back as to where it resides in win7.
k

>Hi Karen,
>
>you can change the textcursor via the windows control panel.
>>Have a look at this webpage: http://www.bltt.org/accessibility/winxp/disp_cursorblink.htm
>It describes it for WinXP. It's availlable for Win7, too. However, it is hidden somewhere else :-)
>
>>is there a way to change the color of the flashing cursor? the colors i have sected in edit mode make it almost impossible to see which field the flashing cursor is in. -- also is there a way to increase the width.
>>
>>thanks
>>k