>To me the whole "VFP vs dotNET" thing is not a debate, it is like someone asking "am I better taking penicillin or prozac" with people insisting that one or the other is always best. How often do we see pointless assertions along the lines that penicillin is ancient and therefore no good while prozac is like "wow" ;-)

LOL! Exactly. I mean, without specifying whether we are trying to fight a bacteria or depression there's really no basis on which to hinge all of the carefully crafted arguments for or against a proposed solution to the problem. Visual Studio is best, Visual FoxPro is best... best at what? Both tools have their place.

>IMHO people need to make a decision and review it at intervals set by THEMSELVES. They need to consider industry trends, such as outsourcing. There was a time when consultants could coast the waves, learning Powerbuilder, VB, Java, and whatever tool-of-the-month allowed them to post the big bills, but outsourcing is killing that. In 2006, safety comes from being a project manager or niche practitioner. I.e. neither penicillin nor prozac- but something alternative like Primrose oil. ;-)
>
>Which is pretty much what you're saying, right? Your customers value you not because you promise to use a cool tool but because you deliver product that works in their business on their hardware. That's the perfect position to be in in 2006 IMHO.

Yes, that's pretty much what I'm saying. Visual FoxPro can be a very sound business decision for developers and the customers they serve. Big sweeping generalizations made by some that we should all get out now while we have the chance are ignorant in the extreme. Some would say... stick with VFP and you'll be like those poor COBOL developers, but what they don't tell you is that there are businesses and developers that are making millions providing for that COBOL market and they'll go on making millions for years to come. There are too many factors that come into play on a case-by-case basis to make sweeping generalizations about the latest flavor of the month. I'm not stuck on stupid when it comes to Visual FoxPro... I use it because for me and my customers it is a "best fit".