I'd say the habitat is good for any independent developer who knows how to deliver a quality solution that meets the client's needs. In my experience, most clients don't particularly care what specific tools are used to deliver that solution as long as it works. The exception is when working with corporate clients who have to conform to standards set for their IT shops, but even then I have not found the choice of VFP to be an issue. An eyebrow raiser, maybe, but not a roadblock.

I'd make a distinction between 'highly evolved' and 'highly specialized', though. The more highly specialized a creature is, the more vulnerable it may be to fundamental changes in its environment. But IMO we VFP developers have become more generalized, rather than more specialized, as we've evolved from Fox 2x, and we are now capable of working with -- or at least interacting with -- many different tools outside the scope of VFP itself. So I think that argues well for our survival as a species.

Three years hence? Who knows... most of the time, if I can see out three months I think I'm doing well. But I'm certainly optimistic. I know of at least one new corporate VFP developer who's doing good things for his company here in town. For my part, I've been doing this (working as an independent VFP developer) since 1993 and I see no end in sight.

Rick





>Hey Rick,
>
> How's the 'habitat' around the Champaign area? In Louisville there's not enough habitat for the species, niche or otherwise, to support a viable population anymore, much less procreate. I've seen no litter of kits around here since 1991.
>
> And you're correct about the "highly evolved creature". But I remember sitting in a Stephen J. Gould lecture once in which he demostrated that 'evolving' is usually accompanied by greater complexity and vulnerability. (i.e. 'evolved' doesn't necessarily translate into successfull survival.)
>
> What do you forsee for your population three years hense?
>
>Steven-