change PHP include directory

Hi, Normally to change a sites include directory for PHP I'd use a .htaccess file and the following command: php_value include_path ".:/path/to/web/" Again normally, I would get the path to the site by doing a simple phpinfo(); command and find the _ENV["DOCUMENT_ROOT"] line near the end of the phpinfo(); page. I've just setup an account with a shared hosting provider - I'm not fully sure if they allow me to use .htaccess or not, I've got a call into tech support but waiting is boring. So while I wait - is there a better or more accurate way of determining the actual path to my site on their server? I'm sure it has been written into PHP to specifically not allow this - just curious. Secondly, if it is proven that my host does not allow .htaccess - is there another way for me to change the include directory from its default and into my sites root? This current site isn't all that large, so I could live without changing the include path - but my next job (which is already committed to this same host) is fairly large and will be a necessity for the change to occur. Thanks -Tim