[development] node_access for not the global user?

I'm looking for a way to determine if an arbitrary user (i.e, not the global or current user) has access to a node. The node_access() function in the node.module looks like what I want, except that it only applies to the current user. I only actually care if the user can view the node. Any ideas? I'd thought of redefining the $_GLOBAL['user'] temporarily and then running node_access, but I think that might be dangerous (side effects?). I could also just copy that node_access function and change the references to the global user, but I'm hoping someone's already thought through a more elegant solution. -- Alan Dixon, Web Developer http://alan.g.dixon.googlepages.com/