clearing dtcs

That probably means that they are hard codes and simply resetting immediately. You have to resolve/repair the code issues and not simply try to clear them.

they were still there after clearing and before the car had been started again

Yes, many codes can set immediately when the key is turned on.

ok all seven of the codes i am getting according to my chilton manual are supposed to turn the mil light on but it is not does this mean my ecm is going out or what

You never said you were getting that many codes. that does tend to point to a bad ECM but it should still be analyzed further.

what can i do to check things out myself i do have a scantool and also a digital multimeter 10megaohms

You're going to have to manually check out each one of those codes and determine if they are false codes or not and then verify all the power and ground supplies to the ECM.

ok so my multimeter and my chilton manual just became my best friends

how common is it for an ecm to go bad

ok i replaced the ecm but the codes are still there are they actually stored in the prom chip

No, you didn't do the proper troubleshooting before doing that and the ECM was not the problem.

ok i checked my tps as per instructions in chilton manual and it is giving me almost 5 volts at idle position where as the chilton manual says it should only be .45 - 1.25 volts at that position and as i open the throttle the voltage decreases so my question is whether the tps is bad or is the chilton manual wrong