FRC Blogged - FIRST Choice 2014

[MechEng83]

http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc/blog-FIRST-Choice-2014

FIRST Choice will be back for the 2014 FRC Season!

There are a few relevant FIRST Choice dates about which you should know.

•11/25/13: FIRST Choice will open for window shopping. Teams will see the parts available and how many credits each part will cost.
•12/9/13 (noon, Eastern): FIRST Choice log-in information will be available in TIMS for registered and paid teams. Teams use this information to make sure they can log-in to the AndyMark FIRST Choice system. We are posting log-in information before ordering starts to allow test logins and help identify any issues prior to the rush to order parts.
•12/14/13 (noon, Eastern): FIRST Choice will open for ordering for registered and paid teams. Please note that this is a Saturday. We received a lot of feedback that opening FIRST Choice on a weekday caused excessive stress on Mentors ordering parts while at work. We hope that, by moving the opening date to a Saturday, we will alleviate some of this stress.
We’ll be giving thorough scrutiny to the credit value for each part. We will also be using item limits more regularly. Our goal is to give more Teams access to the most desirable items available.

We’re so grateful to our partners at AndyMark, a Crown Supplier, for their continued work to improve the execution of FIRST Choice each year. AndyMark redesigned the ordering process over the summer and made the notable changes below.

•FIRST Choice will now be hosted on its own site to eliminate confusion on logging in with your team's FIRST Choice account vs. logging in with your AndyMark account.
•Shipping costs will now be paid only via Credit Card.
•Items in your Cart will be reserved for a short period of time while you shop and checkout. This means those specific items can’t be claimed by someone else while you work on your order. However it also means that you won’t be able to park items in your cart for an extended length of time.
While they’ve done extensive internal testing on the changes to the site, AndyMark would like you to sign up to help them Beta test the changes to the site externally. Beta testers will be asked to run the new site through its paces to help eliminate issues on opening day. To help test these new features and the new ordering site, please fill out the form located at http://bit.ly/HwD86u and you will be sent more information. The beta test should take between 15 and 30 minutes. Thank you to those of you who take this effort on!

Glad to see they revamped the system. Time will tell if the system is better.

[Akash Rastogi]

Great update from FIRST and AndyMark.

+1 again to Frank

[coalhot]

Nice update for the system. Will give teams the chance to make sure there aren't any login problems, like last year.

Definitely +1

[Steven Donow]

Good to see actual investigation into item limits/credit values

[arizonafoxx]

Good to see I don't have to worry about being stuck in a meeting at work or out on a job site while everyone is frantically buying everything they can in the first hour. Also good to see that there will be some limits on certain items and that once an item is in your cart it will still be there at checkout.

[MechEng83]

My only issue with this is that it opens on the same day as the Indiana State FLL tournament. I guess I won't be going to support any of our local teams that make it to state.

Otherwise, it looks like a well thought out list of improvements based on the feedback teams provided, including initial login testing.

[sanddrag]

Very glad to see it on Saturday. FIRST is listening to us. :)

[thefro526]

FIRST Choice log-in information will be available in TIMS for registered and paid teams. Teams use this information to make sure they can log-in to the AndyMark FIRST Choice system. We are posting log-in information before ordering starts to allow test logins and help identify any issues prior to the rush to order parts.

We received a lot of feedback that opening FIRST Choice on a weekday caused excessive stress on Mentors ordering parts while at work. We hope that, by moving the opening date to a Saturday, we will alleviate some of this stress

We’ll be giving thorough scrutiny to the credit value for each part. We will also be using item limits more regularly. Our goal is to give more Teams access to the most desirable items available.

Items in your Cart will be reserved for a short period of time while you shop and checkout. This means those specific items can’t be claimed by someone else while you work on your order. However it also means that you won’t be able to park items in your cart for an extended length of time.

Kudos to the all of the people behind this, both at HQ and AndyMark, it's really nice to see that people are listening and willing to work on things to try to make things just a little bit easier.

Things like this are making me more and more excited for 2014.

[AllenGregoryIV]

I am actually a little annoyed by the move to a Saturday. That means I am going to have to figure out how to get internet access while refereeing a VEX event.

Everything else I'm very happy about, so overall good job.

[Taylor]

I am actually a little annoyed by the move to a Saturday. That means I am going to have to figure out how to get internet access while refereeing a VEX event.

Everything else I'm very happy about, so overall good job.
Question to the AndyMark staff: Will the FIRST Choice site be mobile-friendly?

[DampRobot]

Question to the AndyMark staff: Will the FIRST Choice site be mobile-friendly?

I doubt you'd want to access it from a phone. Even with 4G, landline internet is probably faster.

[rsisk]

Will be beta testing the process. Happy to see the constant improvement to the system.

[ehochstein]

I doubt you'd want to access it from a phone. Even with 4G, landline internet is probably faster.

I agree but what if your landline is down?

[AdamHeard]

I agree but what if your landline is down?

What if the landlines are down AND the cell towers are down? FIRST should really fix this potential issue.

[Whippet]

What if the landlines are down AND the cell towers are down? FIRST should really fix this potential issue.

What if the landlines, the cell towers, AND the FIRST Choice Servers are down? What do we do then?

[DampRobot]

What if the landlines, the cell towers, AND the FIRST Choice Servers are down? What do we do then?

Break into AndyMark's warehouse and physically take your FIRST Choice items. It saves on shipping too.

[thefro526]

My only issue with this is that it opens on the same day as the Indiana State FLL tournament. I guess I won't be going to support any of our local teams that make it to state.

Otherwise, it looks like a well thought out list of improvements based on the feedback teams provided, including initial login testing.

I am actually a little annoyed by the move to a Saturday. That means I am going to have to figure out how to get internet access while refereeing a VEX event.

Everything else I'm very happy about, so overall good job.

Maybe I'm being a bit too positive today, but considering that we've been made aware of the ordering date a about a month and a half ahead of time, and will have a whole month to window shop, and be able to test our respective log-ins the week before FIRST Choice opens, it seems like any scheduling conflicts are pretty easy to work around.

I'm sure that there will be someone available for ~1hr on the 15th with internet access that can read through a pre-made list of parts and place the order. Yes, it could be a bit tricky if something sells out before you can order it, but I guess it's no different than a Pick-List, you plan for the worst and hope for the best?

[coalhot]

Break into AndyMark's warehouse and physically take your FIRST Choice items. It saves on shipping too.

Or we order though an automated phone system: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSQ6q_rGpI8

[AllenGregoryIV]

I'm sure that there will be someone available for ~1hr on the 15th with internet access that can read through a pre-made list of parts and place the order. Yes, it could be a bit tricky if something sells out before you can order it, but I guess it's no different than a Pick-List, you plan for the worst and hope for the best?

Don't get me wrong all these changes seem like they should improve the system. I'm just saying it will be a bit tricky for me to do this on that Saturday and most Saturdays. I'll actually probably just have someone else ref a few matches while I do this, since I'm the only person on the team with a credit card for ordering parts.

[Taylor]

I doubt you'd want to access it from a phone. Even with 4G, landline internet is probably faster.

I agree, but my Saturdays usually spent inside in front of a computer. I get enough of that M-F.

[cgmv123]

That day doesn't work for me, therefore it's a bad day to open FIRST Choice.

Great logic everyone!

[Qbot2640]

What if the landlines, the cell towers, AND the FIRST Choice Servers are down? What do we do then?

Each registered team will be issued one 3 X 5 index card, one blue crayon, and one carrier pigeon...international teams are issued a very fast pigeon.

[DonRotolo]

Dangnabbit. If they keep fixing stuff and making it excellent, what am I going to have left to complain about?

All good. Looking forward to it all.

[MechEng83]

That day doesn't work for me, therefore it's a bad day to open FIRST Choice.

Great logic everyone!

That's the exact same message as the people who couldn't order in previous years due to work obligations M-F. There will never be a perfect time/day.

It is inconvenient for me, but I'll make it work. While I prefered the weekday opening, I understand it inconveniences LESS people to be on Saturday.

[EricH]

Dangnabbit. If they keep fixing stuff and making it excellent, what am I going to have left to complain about?


Complain about the fact you have nothing to complain about. I think you can manage that, Mr. Curmudgeon.


Like the changes--assuming they work (and the test opportunity says they'll have a pretty high chance or working).

[GaryVoshol]

Dangnabbit. If they keep fixing stuff and making it excellent, what am I going to have left to complain about?
The gummint. :rolleyes:

[Kevin Leonard]

Each registered team will be issued one 3 X 5 index card, one blue crayon, and one carrier pigeon...international teams are issued a very fast pigeon.

Teams are issued a swallow and a coconut. They must then calculate the airspeed velocity of the swallow while carrying the coconut. Some teams will be issued African swallows, while others will be issued European swallows.

The teams who incorrectly calculate the airspeed velocity of the swallow will be sacked. The people that proposed using swallows to begin with will also be sacked.

[DampRobot]

Teams are issued a swallow and a coconut. They must then calculate the airspeed velocity of the swallow while carrying the coconut. Some teams will be issued African swallows, while others will be issued European swallows.

The teams who incorrectly calculate the airspeed velocity of the swallow will be sacked. The people that proposed using swallows to begin with will also be sacked.

A classic. Spotlit.

[BBray_T1296]

All teams will be issued a woman, a plank of wood, and a duck. If the woman and the duck weigh the same, the woman is obviously made of wood. That means she is a witch, and will conjure the items you want. If she weighs more/less than the wood, all you get this year is little small rocks.

[yarden.saa]

I am not sure if the changes are good, Saturday means more people trying to order at the same time, the website will be slower and it will take a lot of time to order something.
It took me 45 minutes to order from the FIRST Choice liquidation....
limiting the quantities may be a better solution

[Nemo]

This is about what I expected to see, which reflects positive expectations as a result of various other good decisions that we've seen lately.

I am not sure if the changes are good, Saturday means more people trying to order at the same time, the website will be slower and it will take a lot of time to order something.
It took me 45 minutes to order from the FIRST Choice liquidation....
limiting the quantities may be a better solution

They already said they're limiting quantities. But if you really want the website traffic to be slow, the best way would be to limit the quality of the items. Just make sure all the items are crap, and nobody will bother to clog up the website.

[rees2001]

To help test these new features and the new ordering site, please fill out the form located at http://bit.ly/HwD86u and you will be sent more information. The beta test should take between 15 and 30 minutes. Thank you to those of you who take this effort on!


As a sub-1000 team that had issues logging in last year, then having issues with stuff in my cart being taken before I could check out, I am very happy to help test this system.

This is a great step in the right direction. I would have to say that if I am personally not available at the date and time needed I am sure I could get at least 5 people volunteer to step in for me. I would even be willing to give them the credit card, login information, password, my height, weight, shoe size, inseam, favorite color,... you get the idea. Whatever it takes to get'er done.

[pfreivald]

As a sub-1000 team that had issues logging in last year, then having issues with stuff in my cart being taken before I could check out, I am very happy to help test this system.

This is a great step in the right direction. I would have to say that if I am personally not available at the date and time needed I am sure I could get at least 5 people volunteer to step in for me. I would even be willing to give them the credit card, login information, password, my height, weight, shoe size, inseam, favorite color,... you get the idea. Whatever it takes to get'er done.

My thoughts exactly. This looks like an excellent improvement...and any team that says that they won't be able to do that Saturday needs more volunteers and better planning!

[sanddrag]

I'm hoping it will show actual quantities in stock and also the ordering quantity limits well before opening so we can plan accordingly.

[Kimmeh]

Each registered team will be issued one 3 X 5 index card, one blue crayon, and one carrier pigeon...international teams are issued a very fast pigeon.

Can it be a blue or red crayon, so that we don't overwhelm suppliers and cause blue crayons to be out of stock for a while?

[PayneTrain]

I'm hoping it will show actual quantities in stock and also the ordering quantity limits well before opening so we can plan accordingly.

You can get 6 Talons from FIRST Choice.

No, that's how many are available to acquire. For all the teams.

FIRST Choice Hunger Games: May the odds be ever in your favor...

[Tom Line]

Dear First:

An item limit of one or perhaps two on any high demand item like talons would be a very good idea.

Then you can open up the rest of the unsold components when we get our second batch of FIRST choice points at kickoff.