>>>I think I understand that, but why does one Vartype() return 'U' while another gets Error?
>>>
>>>I have been using Vartype( oObject.cProperty ) whenever I knew that oObject existed, rather than Pemstatus(), and it works the way I think it should.
>>
>>You used it icorrectly. You shoud use TYPE() instead.
>
>Are you saying I should never use Vartype() if there is a possibility that it will return 'U'?
>If that's not what you're saying can you give me an example where it's used properly and returns 'U'?

Yes, you should avoid using VARTYPE() if variable/property may not exists.