When I answer, I hit "reply all". This seems to send a private as well as a public message to the group. I think there's some wisdom to this. You can't expect everyone to be subscribed at any given point in time. I don't normally send private messages, however, I do think I have the right to respond to an individual privately, on any topic (DBA related or not) if I think it is something that concerns only them and I. -- //www.freelists.org/webpage/oracle-l