wow, thanks Cyn, you're the best!!! damn Randy, that's mighty useful!!! sharpening is always the last step in my pw. i had got a tip from someone else here on the site that suggested that i sharpen twice then unsharp. not knowing any better i did just that and have been doing so for months...damn it...lol!!! good thing i'm anal and keep the original file seperate from the postworked ones. looks like it's back to the drawling board. thank you both for the tremendous help, your assistance is greatly appreciated!!! eb