>>I generally agree with what you have said except for me creativity, learning and expanding one's world lies not in the development tool or platform but in the application of those tools to solving the problem. I really couldn’t care less about the tool per se. I have no attachment to development tools, including VFP. I care about the solution I end up with.
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>>There is a classic management tale about Black & Dekker, the power tool company. When the management were asked by a business consultant what business they thought they were in the management resoundingly said electric drills (this was back in the day when they only did drills). The consultant replied that this was, in fact, not their business at all. B&D are in the business of selling holes. If tomorrow they invented a device which made those holes with a laser they would be selling lasers and not electric drills. They are in the hole making business. Similarly for me. I am not in the development tool business and learning a new one does not enhance my life per se. The solutions I put together with whatever development tools I use enhance my life and business.
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>But, to extend the analogy, does that mean you will continue to use an electric drill to make the hole when a superior laser-based solution is available :-}

Then you have missed my point; I'm interested in the hole, not the tool. So if we can find a better tool then all well and good. The extention of the analogy into real-world application is that the better tool must take into account a whole range of context specific issues including cost of the new tool, applicability, existing tool investment, etc.

Personally I use perhaps 20 different tools to create applications, some are full IDEs but many are 3rd party tools written in I don't care what and that when working together solve a problem elegantly, efficiently and on a good cost-benefit basis.

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