I am in a similar situation as you. I was downsized last december and been looking for a new job since then without much success. All I've got after 2 months of search and over 60 resumes sent is 2 interviews. It's not that I don't have enough experience, I have 13 years of experiences in VFP, C++, VB and SQL Server. I've never seen the computer business as low as it is now.

I don't want to discourage you, but it may not be the best of time to go independant, unless you can survive without a regular pay for a while.

Good luck.

>I've been developing database applications for over 10 years, from dBase III, FoxPro DOS and now VFP6.
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>After recently being downsized from my last position, I'm giving thought to using some time off to attempt going it alone as an independant contractor.
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>I would appreciate any advice, tips, pitfalls, etc to getting things started. i.e. marketing/sales advice and anything else.
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>Also, for anyone already doing this in Canada, do I need to register myself as a business and get a GST number and all that? Or, can I attempt to make a go of this first and then, if successful and continuing, worry about that?