ok, now that i've embarrassed myself.. (:
i figured a way around it; i just simply left out http:// and placed it statically in another portion of the code; i can always make a workaround if i need to link to, say, something with an ftp:// protocol heading. (:
sorry for all the mess and frustration (although most of it was likely on my part hehe)
thanks!
strfry()