>>I have to defend myself... :) Although I understand what you're saying (this message and others) and I also agree up to a certain point. :)
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>*snip*
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>FWIW, Paul, I agree with you. They ARE different! :)

Fred,

Ok, one of you tell me exactly how they are different. That is, how is a private variable created through assignment different from a private variable that was declared before it was created through assignment. The variables are NOT any different, the behavior of the program may be different but the variables are PRIVATE. In VFP the default scoping for a variable is PRIVATE.

Please explain to me the different behavior, scoping, visibility or anything else between the two. There is no difference. If a private variable exists and lower level routine refers to that variable then that variable is affected. That is what PRIVATE is. If a routine asssigns a value to a name that does not exist as a variable, then the variable created is PRIVATE.