check this out, this is the whiniest change ever, but what I want is this to work: irb(main):001:0> "".is_a? String => true irb(main):002:0> [].is_an? Array NoMethodError: undefined method `is_an?' for []:Array from (irb):2 I just HATE writing "is_a? Array" because it's grammatically incorrect. I realize this is incredibly silly and anal, but the thing is, all you have to do is one simple alias command and you're good to go. so -- how do I contribute to Ruby itself? -- Giles Bowkett http://www.gilesgoatboy.org