> hi, i posted this clarification just after the original posting.
>
> what i want is:
>
> 1. the newest message between myself and person A
> 2. the newest message between myself and person B
> 3. the newest message between myself and person C
> 4. the newest message between myself and person D
>
> ... and so on

Still, define "newest":

- newest according to date?
- newest not yet read message?
- something else?

Martijn Tonies
Database Workbench - development tool for MySQL, and more!
Upscene Productions
http://www.upscene.com
My thoughts:
http://blog.upscene.com/martijn/
Database development questions? Check the forum!
http://www.databasedevelopmentforum.com