Hi All, I know you're probably getting tired of this topic but Bernard Barber offered his insight and inspired me to the following .... Main Entry: lurk Pronunciation: 'l&rk Function: intransitive verb Etymology: Middle English; akin to Middle High German luren to lie in wait Date: 14th century 1 a : to lie in wait in a place of concealment especially for an evil purpose b : to move furtively or inconspicuously c : to persist in staying 2 a : to be concealed but capable of being discovered; specifically : to constitute a latent threat b : to lie hidden - lurk·er noun synonyms LURK, SKULK, SLINK, SNEAK mean to behave so as to escape attention. LURK implies a lying in wait in a place of concealment and often suggests an evil intent <suspicious men lurking in alleyways>. SKULK suggests more strongly cowardice or fear or sinister intent <something skulking in the shadows>. SLINK implies moving stealthily ften merely to escape attention <slunk around the corner>. SNEAK may add an implication of entering or leaving a place or evading a difficulty by furtive, indirect, or underhanded methods <sneaked out early>. Well, that's pretty convincing... Who wants to be a lurker?? Monitor perhaps?? Main Entry: 1mon·i·tor Pronunciation: 'mä-n&-t&r Function: noun Etymology: Latin, one that warns, overseer, from monEre to warn Date: 1546 1 a : a student appointed to assist a teacher b : one that warns or instructs c : one that monitors or is used in monitoring: as (1) : a cathode-ray tube used for display (as of television pictures or computer information) (2) : a device for observing a biological condition or function <a heart monitor> 2 : any of various large tropical Old World lizards (genus Varanus of the family Varanidae) closely related to the iguanas 3 [Monitor, first ship of the type] a : a heavily armored warship formerly used in coastal operations having a very low freeboard and one or more revolving gun turrets b : a small modern warship with shallow draft for coastal bombardment 4 : a raised central portion of a roof having low windows or louvers for providing light and air - mon·i·to·ri·al /"mä-n&-'tOr-E-&l, -'tor-/ adjective - mon·i·tor·ship /'mä-n&-t&r-"ship/ noun Not too bad but no, monitor won't work for me, (don't wish to be associated with bombardment, or warships, or lizards) How about Bernard's suggestion - observer? Main Entry: ob·serv·er Pronunciation: &b-'z&r-v&r Function: noun Date: circa 1550 : one that observes: as a : a representative sent to observe but not participate officially in an activity (as a meeting or war) b : an expert analyst and commentator in a particular field <political observers> Nope, let's leave out war and politics..... Bernard also suggested peeper?? I'm leery of this one already... Main Entry: 1peep·er Pronunciation: 'pE-p&r Function: noun Date: 1591 1 : one that makes a peeping sound 2 : any of various tree frogs that peep shrilly; especially : SPRING PEEPER Hmmmm, not so bad, but nope, we "lurk" without a peep. How about another of Bernard's suggestions - looker? Main Entry: look·er Pronunciation: 'lu-k&r Function: noun Date: 14th century 1 : one that looks 2 a : one having an appearance of a specified kind b : one that has an attractive appearance : BEAUTY Not bad, but we'll probably have excess drool from the males contemplating 1800 "lookers". Watcher? Main Entry: watch·er Pronunciation: 'wä-ch&r, 'wo- Function: noun Date: 1509 : one that watches: as a : one that sits up or continues awake at night b : WATCHMAN c (1) : one that keeps watch beside a dead person (2) : one that attends a sick person at night d : a person who closely follows or observes someone or something <a Supreme Court watcher> --often used in combination <celebrity-watchers> e : a representative of a party or candidate who is stationed at the polls on an election day to watch the conduct of officials and voters Nope, this one won't do either...... Reader?? Main Entry: read·er Pronunciation: 'rE-d&r Function: noun Date: before 12th century 1 a : one that reads b : one appointed to read to others: as (1) :LECTOR (2) : one chosen to read aloud selected material in a Christian Science church or society c (1) : PROOFREADER (2) : one who evaluates manuscripts (3) : one who reads periodical literature to discover items of special interest or value d : an employee who reads and records the indications of meters e : a teacher's assistant who reads and marks student papers 2 British : one who reads lectures or expounds subjects to students 3 a : a device for projecting a readable image of a transparency b : a unit that scans material recorded (as on punched cards) for storage or computation 4 a : a book for instruction and practice especially in reading b : ANTHOLOGY Now we're getting closer to what I'm looking for.... Main Entry: stu·dent Pronunciation: 'stü-d&nt, 'styü-, chiefly Southern -d&nt Function: noun Usage: often attributive Etymology: Middle English, from Latin student-, studens, from present participle of studEre to study -- more at STUDY Date: 14th century 1 :SCHOLAR, LEARNER; especially : one who attends a school 2 : one who studies : an attentive and systematic observer Now this I really prefer... call me a student, a scholar, a learner.. much, much better than being a "lurker". All the very best gang, from an attentive and systematic observer... your student ............ murray [log in to unmask]