There was/is a movement (or "near movement") to FAVOR open source software in government contracts. This would presumably be part of microsoft's attempt to head that off. See: http://news.com.com/2100-1001-975578.html?tag=fd_top We had quite a heated discussion (in some circles) here about it... BillW -- http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details.