on *nix i use this

#
# returns true if pid is running, false otherwise
#
   def alive pid
#--{{{
     pid = Integer("#{ pid }")
     begin
       Process::kill 0, pid
       true
     rescue Errno::ESRCH
       false
     end
#--}}}
   end
   alias alive? alive
   export 'alive', 'alive?'


i expect it won't work on windows but maybe i'm wrong?  if so can  
someone suggest code to accomplish this task?

cheers.

a @ http://drawohara.com/
--
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h.h. the 14th dalai lama