Kev,

Think of DataSets this way ... as just another class. What if you need the same DataSet in several different forms? You wouldn't want to re-code the exact same thing in each form. If you already created a DataSet class (in it's own project or not), you can re-use it among many forms.

Make more sense now? =)

~~Bonnie

>>Kev,
>>
>>Sorry I confused you ... it's a common complaint about me. <g>
>>
>>I don't know anything about Crystal, but I don't think that matters for this discussion. It sounds like you need to have your Data objects in separate projects, or at the very least as an item in your existing project (I'd separate it into a separate project though). DataSets are nothing more than .xsd files (which, as I explained in my other post, you can get with ds.WriteXMLSchema()). Once you have an .xsd file generated in this manner, you can "add existing item" to your DataSet project. Another thing you can do, is build them in the IDE (which is, I think, what you first mentioned). Either way is acceptable, the way I described in my other post just automates things, which becomes necessary (to me anyway) if you have tons of DataSets that you need to create.
>>
>>Clear as mud? <g>
>>
>>~~Bonnie
>
>[I think] you've answered my question.
>
>I've always preferred to create the objects by hand in say, an application/data class in code, I've never bothered adding the DS's to the project as an item.
>
>Maybe I should do it that way from now on? What do you think, by hand, or by mouse? :)
>
>Kev