Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!mit-eddie!uw-beaver!cornell!batcomputer!prove
From: prove@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu (Roger Ove)
Newsgroups: comp.windows.news
Subject: Re: How to find out if a file exists
Summary: session log
Message-ID: <8135@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>
Date: 7 Jun 89 15:52:09 GMT
References: <7506@hoptoad.uucp> <8087@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu> <7505@etana.tut.fi>
Organization: Theory Center, Cornell U., Ithaca NY
Lines: 42

It could be that I have a premature (buggy) release of NeWS 1.1,
since otherwise I can't see why this works for you and not me.
Here is a session log, using the routine cut from your posting
(same result for the init.ps version as well, of course):

psh  
executive
(NeWS/debug.ps) run
dbgstart
Welcome to NeWS Version 1.1
Debugger installed.


/fileexists {
    {(r) file} stopped {
        pop pop false
    } {
        closefile true
    }
    ifelse
} def
				
				
(user.ps) fileexists
pstack
true 
clear
				
(nofile) fileexists
**ERROR** The error & current stack are:
Error name: undefinedfilename
Command:'file'
(r)
(nofile)
**ERROR** The error & current stack are:
Error name: typecheck
Command:`closefile'
(r)
(nofile)

pstack
(nofile) (r) true