>>>Are you sure that the column based on the master table field, and not on related lookup table field? Do you provide alias in column.controlsource?
>>
>>The grid's RowSource is a view which joins the child code field to the parent table. No, the column's ControlSource doesn't specify the alias, but I know it's getting the view's field, not the child table's, because there are no empty codes in the child table. If I were showing the wrong field, it would have looked right (and wouldn't that have been fun for me to debug!)
>>
>>Hmm. Bad programmer. I really should supply the alias in the column.ControlSource, shouldn't I? Even though I know this form only uses the one alias and never moves from it...someday that could change.
>>
>>Thanks,
>
>Rich,
>When you populate the view, you make LEFT JOIN (i guess), so you can really get NULLs when right table does not have matches. Try to browse your view from command window to make sure.

Thanks, that's surely my problem. I forgot the grid was based on a view, so viewing the table was comparing apples to oranges.

Ok, my hair has restabilized at its current grayness...(which is still too much for a 35 year old)...