Deduction vs. Credit example:
Assume that in 2002, a family with AGI of $40,000 spends $5,000 on qualified education expenses.  It would be more advantageous for this family to take a $1,000 Lifetime Learning credit compared to a $3,000 deduction (which would produce a $450 reduction in taxes based on them being in the 15% tax bracket).  The credit reduces tax liability dollar for dollar versus a deduction which reduces tax liability by a percentage.
In contrast, a family with modified AGI of $110,000 would be ineligible to take the Lifetime Learning credit, but still would be eligible to take a $3,000 deduction for a net tax reduction of approximately $900 assuming they were in the 30% tax bracket.