>Vlad,
>
>>Finaly, try
>>oTest1.name = 'node123'
>>gather name otest1
>>
>>Now otest1.children = .NULL., and otest2 gone from memory!!! Looks like bug with object references...
>
>I do not see this behavior. After your two statements, oTest1.children is still an object reference to oTest2 and oTest2 is still intact. Your results are consistent with what would happen if you 'release oTest2'. Any chance that happened? (VFP6/SP3)

Yes, VFP6/SP3. I changed values from 'locals' window in debugger, however, instead of "oTest1.name = 'node123'". I cannot reproduce it any more, but sure,
'Release' command and other like that were not used. Just after some changes in properties of these objects (when oTest1 referenced oTest2), 'gather name otest1' command caused oTest2 being destroyed. The most interesting thing is that oTest2 disappeared completely from memory, and correct value (.NULL.) placed in oTest1 object. Looks like 'scatter name' object is not variable with object refernce like for usual cases in VFP, but something like internal object without any reference, so it disappears as soon as VFP ask question 'if ReferenceCount = 0 (yes)=> Destory that object'.