Good Morning Teams,
This week FRC will complete the prototype for a lower cost playing field. The goal was to create something that looks and performs as well as the fields we use at Championship and the engineering department has done a great job. We will continue to use our existing 15 fields, but now we can explore the possibility of expanding with this new design.
I mentioned last week that the Chairman’s Award info would be posted soon. It’s here.
And finally, congratulations to Dave Lavery’s team 116. Ten girls from Epsilon Delta participated in a White House Roundtable marking the 37th anniversary of Title IX. For more details look here.
184 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
What do Crackerjacks have to do with anything?
Good Morning Teams,
The Game Design Committee has come and gone and we’re a lot closer to having a game for 2010. We liked most of what the first floor engineering team prototyped for field elements (although there will be a number of changes) and we’ve started to focus on how to play the game. Let’s see. What can I tell you? Dean decided he likes mini Haagen-Dazs coffee ice cream cups. I learned Dave drinks diet Coke and you’d be surprised how much fun a bunch of engineers can have with a case of Crackerjacks. We’ve scheduled our next meeting already and in September we’ll introduce you to some of our newest members.
The Chairman’s Award criteria will be posted on our website as soon as the final details are decided. (I know it’s late, but I’d rather wait and post it when it’s complete.) If you’re itching to get started you should know that this year, submissions will have to include a video. Paul Lazarus of White Dwarf Productions has posted two very helpful videos here www.youtube.com/whitedwarfprods to get you going.
192 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
The Game Design Committee has come and gone and we’re a lot closer to having a game for 2010. We liked most of what the first floor engineering team prototyped for field elements (although there will be a number of changes) and we’ve started to focus on how to play the game. Let’s see. What can I tell you? Dean decided he likes mini Haagen-Dazs coffee ice cream cups. I learned Dave drinks diet Coke and you’d be surprised how much fun a bunch of engineers can have with a case of Crackerjacks. We’ve scheduled our next meeting already and in September we’ll introduce you to some of our newest members.
The Chairman’s Award criteria will be posted on our website as soon as the final details are decided. (I know it’s late, but I’d rather wait and post it when it’s complete.) If you’re itching to get started you should know that this year, submissions will have to include a video. Paul Lazarus of White Dwarf Productions has posted two very helpful videos here www.youtube.com/whitedwarfprods to get you going.
192 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
Thursday, June 25, 2009
The GDC is coming!
Good Morning Teams,
We’ve cleared the last of the 2009 season equipment off the first floor. (Field refurbishment will continue in our warehouse all summer.) We’ve laid out carpet salvaged from Championship and set up field #1. We’ve stocked up on soda, arranged for food to be delivered at regular intervals and cancelled our weekend plans. The Game Design Committee (GDC) is coming for an onsite meeting.
The kit of parts survey is ready. Please give us your feedback. We share some of your comments directly with suppliers and pay close attention to all your opinions as we make decisions for next year’s kit of parts. Let us know what you think.
198 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
We’ve cleared the last of the 2009 season equipment off the first floor. (Field refurbishment will continue in our warehouse all summer.) We’ve laid out carpet salvaged from Championship and set up field #1. We’ve stocked up on soda, arranged for food to be delivered at regular intervals and cancelled our weekend plans. The Game Design Committee (GDC) is coming for an onsite meeting.
The kit of parts survey is ready. Please give us your feedback. We share some of your comments directly with suppliers and pay close attention to all your opinions as we make decisions for next year’s kit of parts. Let us know what you think.
198 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
need an internship? a milling machine?
Good Afternoon Teams,
Are you studying for your EE? FRC needs a summer EE intern. I know it’s late in the season to offer this position, as most of you probably already have plans, but I’ve only just gotten approval from the powers that be and I really need the help. If you can commute to our headquarters in Manchester, NH and want an experience like no other, send your resume and a cover letter to HR@usfirst.org.
FRC has a used manual Bridgeport milling machine for sale with x-y digital readout and power x-axis feed. No tooling is included and the sale is as-is, FOB Merrimack, NH. $1000 Contact narosenberg@usfirst.org for additional details.
The FRC team is taking a short break this evening to celebrate the 2009 season. It takes a lot of hard work to support all the elements that go into a successful season and I’m proud of the 14½ employees who make up the FRC staff. (Yes, I have ½ a staff member. FRC shares James with FTC.) We’re going to reflect on the challenges and highlights of the season, then first thing tomorrow morning it’s back to work on the 2010 season. I want to thank my staff for their hard work and dedication throughout the season, and thank the countless volunteers who make FRC possible.
206 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
Are you studying for your EE? FRC needs a summer EE intern. I know it’s late in the season to offer this position, as most of you probably already have plans, but I’ve only just gotten approval from the powers that be and I really need the help. If you can commute to our headquarters in Manchester, NH and want an experience like no other, send your resume and a cover letter to HR@usfirst.org.
FRC has a used manual Bridgeport milling machine for sale with x-y digital readout and power x-axis feed. No tooling is included and the sale is as-is, FOB Merrimack, NH. $1000 Contact narosenberg@usfirst.org for additional details.
The FRC team is taking a short break this evening to celebrate the 2009 season. It takes a lot of hard work to support all the elements that go into a successful season and I’m proud of the 14½ employees who make up the FRC staff. (Yes, I have ½ a staff member. FRC shares James with FTC.) We’re going to reflect on the challenges and highlights of the season, then first thing tomorrow morning it’s back to work on the 2010 season. I want to thank my staff for their hard work and dedication throughout the season, and thank the countless volunteers who make FRC possible.
206 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Suppliers Summit and a Duke's Choice Award
Good Afternoon Teams,
This week FRC is holding our annual Supplier’s Summit. Every year we invite our major suppliers (most of whom are also donors) to join us for a day here in Manchester. Thursday night we host a thank you dinner at Dean’s house, then Friday we meet to recap the 2009 season, discuss next year’s kit, gather feedback and ask for additional support. This year, for the first time, participants will have a chance at the Summit to interact with teams, see match play up close and drive robots built with the parts they supplied. My thanks to teams 40, 131, 151, 238, 501 and 1519 who helped make this possible.
Congratulations to Brad Miller of WPI who received a Duke’s Choice Award at last week’s JavaOne Conference. Brad was honored by Sun Microsystems for his work creating a Java port and a Java library for FRC teams to use in the 2010 FRC season. Thank you Brad for all you do. And thanks to teams 115, 604, 846 and 971 who demonstrated their robots and answered questions from the crowd during the conference.
What is your team up to this summer? Are you doing something interesting to promote FIRST? Let me know at FRCteams@usfirst.org.
212 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
P.S. FIRST is switching to a new email server this weekend. During the transition, delivery of email sent to any usfirst.org address after 5PM EST on Friday will be delayed. By Monday morning everything should be back to normal.
This week FRC is holding our annual Supplier’s Summit. Every year we invite our major suppliers (most of whom are also donors) to join us for a day here in Manchester. Thursday night we host a thank you dinner at Dean’s house, then Friday we meet to recap the 2009 season, discuss next year’s kit, gather feedback and ask for additional support. This year, for the first time, participants will have a chance at the Summit to interact with teams, see match play up close and drive robots built with the parts they supplied. My thanks to teams 40, 131, 151, 238, 501 and 1519 who helped make this possible.
Congratulations to Brad Miller of WPI who received a Duke’s Choice Award at last week’s JavaOne Conference. Brad was honored by Sun Microsystems for his work creating a Java port and a Java library for FRC teams to use in the 2010 FRC season. Thank you Brad for all you do. And thanks to teams 115, 604, 846 and 971 who demonstrated their robots and answered questions from the crowd during the conference.
What is your team up to this summer? Are you doing something interesting to promote FIRST? Let me know at FRCteams@usfirst.org.
212 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
P.S. FIRST is switching to a new email server this weekend. During the transition, delivery of email sent to any usfirst.org address after 5PM EST on Friday will be delayed. By Monday morning everything should be back to normal.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Are you ready for a party?
Good Afternoon Teams,
This may sound like a contradiction in terms, but we’re so busy around here that I have nothing to tell you this week. Really. Every part of FRC is related to every other part and every new idea (for the game, for the kit of parts, for the field, for cost savings) causes a chain reaction of other ideas. It’s very dynamic (and very interesting) but if I share something with you that’s hot on a Tuesday, it’s entirely possible that detail will be obsolete by Thursday and I want to share facts with you, not create rumors.
So, what I will do this summer is post information every week about what’s happening behind the scenes (if it doesn’t give away too much about the new game) and make announcements (when we have something definite to share). Keep checking back for updates, and please excuse me, I’ve got a few things I need to go do.
Did you know FRC turns 20 in 2011?
218 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
This may sound like a contradiction in terms, but we’re so busy around here that I have nothing to tell you this week. Really. Every part of FRC is related to every other part and every new idea (for the game, for the kit of parts, for the field, for cost savings) causes a chain reaction of other ideas. It’s very dynamic (and very interesting) but if I share something with you that’s hot on a Tuesday, it’s entirely possible that detail will be obsolete by Thursday and I want to share facts with you, not create rumors.
So, what I will do this summer is post information every week about what’s happening behind the scenes (if it doesn’t give away too much about the new game) and make announcements (when we have something definite to share). Keep checking back for updates, and please excuse me, I’ve got a few things I need to go do.
Did you know FRC turns 20 in 2011?
218 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Java, rogue robots and the kit of parts survey
Good Afternoon Teams,
I’m back from a very interesting trip taken in the interests of FIRST. There’s nothing I can tell you about that yet (stay tuned) but I do have a few loose ends to share this week.
Keep an eye out for the annual FIRST Kit of Parts Survey coming soon. An email blast will be sent to all team main contacts when it’s ready, please encourage them to share the survey with your team when they get it. I want to know what you think.
Logo loc has some used Orbit balls left. They’re going to run out of Super Cells and Empty Cells any minute now, so if you plan to run an off season event or demonstration this summer, get your order in soon.
We’ve figured out why some robots moved before the start of their match or behaved oddly during the season. If a robot links to the field before the FMS has linked with the driver station, there is a short time in which the robot program might see "enabled/teleop" or "enabled/autonomous" before the match actually starts. This can affect teams that coded their robot to expect Autonomous mode to always precede Teleop and cause their robot to make a false start or behave in unexpected ways. We’re going to work on the FMS side of this equation over the summer. What you can do is check your robot program to make sure you haven’t programmed your robot to require autonomous code to run before teleop code.
Have you checked out the Java website? Do you have questions or an opinion? Share your thoughts on the FIRST Java forum at http://forums.usfirst.org/forumdisplay.php?f=1255
226 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
I’m back from a very interesting trip taken in the interests of FIRST. There’s nothing I can tell you about that yet (stay tuned) but I do have a few loose ends to share this week.
Keep an eye out for the annual FIRST Kit of Parts Survey coming soon. An email blast will be sent to all team main contacts when it’s ready, please encourage them to share the survey with your team when they get it. I want to know what you think.
Logo loc has some used Orbit balls left. They’re going to run out of Super Cells and Empty Cells any minute now, so if you plan to run an off season event or demonstration this summer, get your order in soon.
We’ve figured out why some robots moved before the start of their match or behaved oddly during the season. If a robot links to the field before the FMS has linked with the driver station, there is a short time in which the robot program might see "enabled/teleop" or "enabled/autonomous" before the match actually starts. This can affect teams that coded their robot to expect Autonomous mode to always precede Teleop and cause their robot to make a false start or behave in unexpected ways. We’re going to work on the FMS side of this equation over the summer. What you can do is check your robot program to make sure you haven’t programmed your robot to require autonomous code to run before teleop code.
Have you checked out the Java website? Do you have questions or an opinion? Share your thoughts on the FIRST Java forum at http://forums.usfirst.org/forumdisplay.php?f=1255
226 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!
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