*snip*
>In the famous words of Baghdad Bob - I triple guarantee you that passing a VFP exam will not make one better qualified to maintain an app.

Personally, I agree with this. I have no certifications yet I have no shortage of work. Paper MCSEs flooding the market only confirmed my thoughts that certifications mean nothing other than the person was able to pass one or more exams. I would like to think that hiring and purchasing managers have wised up to this.

>Sorry, but it is difficult to justify spending money to get certified in a track that is getting retired - and in a piece of software that is 2 versions old.

Wouldn't you agree that this depends on what a person's goals are? If a person wants to be a Visual Foxpro programmer, then maybe the VFP 6 cert makes sense. If a person wants to be a Microsoft certified solutions provider, then pursuing the current cert path makes more sense. If a person has a lot of time and money and enjoys taking tests and getting certifications then he or she needs to talk to me! I'll create all sorts of tests and certificates like Toilet Roll Installation Engineer (after all, am I the only one that understands the need for toilet paper to feed over the top rather than from underneath??) and Highway Lane Selection Specialist to show that a person has mastered the fine art and science of choosing a proper lane for travel upon our roads.