Need to check whether a param exists!

Hi, All I'm trying to do is check for the presence of a query string, but everything I try gives me an Undefined Index error. I want to set a variable $pagename to whatever was passed as the ?page= value, and if it wasn't passed, set it to some default value. http://www.mysite.com/index.php?page=hello <?php if (is_object($_REQUEST['page'])) $pagename = $_REQUEST['page']; else $pagename = "home"; ?> I also tried is_null, tried if($_REQUEST) by itself, also tried all of these with $_GET, $_POST, $_GLOBAL, but they all give me Undefined Index error on that If line. - Brian