>One nice thing about going this route, rather than using INLIST() is that it's more flexible for future changes (IMO).

I tend to stick with INLIST() instead of '$' when possible, as I have to make my code as "legacy-proof" as possible, so that people with little vfp knowledge might be able to make minor changes - and INLIST I think is more explanatory than '$' for a newbie...and of course it's optimizable (though not in this case, of course, but often is). But I agree it's less typing.