Engineering slogans

[Ben Mitchell]

Ok...I just thought this up:

On my team, we have the saying "righty-tighty, lefty-loosy" to teach the kiddies which way to turn the screwdriver. (if only they'd remember:rolleyes: )


Does your team have any funny/useful slogans for remembering technical/engineering things?:D

[Jan Olligs]

I know that one, it doesn't really help me, though; I always have to remember that "right" really means "clockwise"...
Of course we have "KISS" (Keep it simple, stupid) and "MISS" (Make it square, ...) and there is Murphy's Law, that I like to quote, in all its variations...

[Jim Giacchi]

If it doesn't fit get a larger hammer.

Seriously though one year the head engineer actually gave out certificates that proved we were all members of the "Cold Forging" club.

[Clark Gilbert]

If u are making something with a tool that is not quite percise always make things smaller (especially holes)....I always say this to myself when i'm making something....maybe cut a little big so u can sand it down to the exact size, because if u make it to big you cant go back, but if u make it small you have room for error...
:)

[PsychoPhil]

I saw some team at the nationals that I thought had a really cool engineering slogan:



"Some people say the galss is half full.

Some people say the glass is half empty.

We say the glass is twice as big as it needs to be."



I love that one...


I'm bored guys, so someone open an interesting post that I can read and post in and so on, pleeeeeeease ;-)

[mpking]

"Where's my BFH"?

My own personal saying, not related to the team.

[purplehaze357]

Originally posted by Jim Giacchi
If it doesn't fit get a larger hammer.



the hammer is the engineers ultimate tool

[GregT]

For some reason (I'm sure you can guess) my team took to calling hammers "fine adjustment tools". If you were to talk by our pit at nats you would hear us saying we needed to make a few fine adjustments, and be handed a hammer.

If it doesn't fit wack it really hard... that cost my team 4 hours waiting for the machine shop :) when it's supposed to be a sliding fit, a hammer is not necessary.

That said, we labled our robot front and back. We spent 90% of our time at nats broken, and 60 - 70% of that time at the top of the white devision. At NYC we left our shielding all over the field our first practice. at nats we left a chain on the field.

"If it aint broken don't fix it. If it is broken it won't be alone for long."

"Warentee Void if broken"

I use that glass saying almost every other day, love it.

[DanLevin247]

"beat to fit.....paint to match"

[Melissa Nute]

Um
'Beware of the Killing Machine' aka the Milling Machine....when a bit breaks off of that...its deadly.....

[Steve Prairie]

...If it ain't broken don't fix it...

[Al Skierkiewicz]

My personal favorites...
If it ain't broke, don't fix it!
Measure twice, cut once. (I cut it twice and it is still too short!?)
Get the persuader. (Hammer reference)
The right tool for the right job. (Don't use a cannon to kill a fly!)
All time best Murphy's Law...Murphy's fifth law, the law of selective gravitation...
A dropped tool will fall where it will do the most damage.

Team favorites...
We'll fix it in software.
Have fun.

[Digo]

"Righty-tighty, lefty-loosy" and "the right tool for the right job" were introduced in our team by our mentor in 2000 (great Phil!!), but I guess this last one wasn't very accepted.

Once in 2000 we were trying to remove a lock nut from a screw, and it was the kind of lock nut with rubber, made not to be easily removed. The kids (me included at that time) tried to do that with about 12 or 13 different tools! A guy even brought a soldering iron (trying to melt the rubber). And then Phil came with a screw driver (!) and did it.

I didn't know hammers were so popular in other teams as well! There's nothing that a hammer and some cable ties won't solve.

[Andrew Rudolph]

hehe for us we arent hamer people, we are vice grip people. but our saying is "thats the C.E. in R.A.C.E.!" basically anytime we need to creatively engineer anything we say that when we are done. basically when we need to ghetto rig things fast




andrew

[Digo]

do you mind sharing the meaning of that? :D

Originally posted by Andrew Rudolph
hehe for us we arent hamer people, we are vice grip people. but our saying is "thats the C.E. in R.A.C.E.!" basically anytime we need to creatively engineer anything we say that when we are done. basically when we need to ghetto rig things fast




andrew

[Andrew Rudolph]

Well our team name is R.A.C.E. Which Stands for Robotics And Creative Engineering. Creative engeering for us is when you kinda fib a fix to somthing, or get the job done with sub par materials. We used to call it engineering problem solving. But now its creative engineering. and that is what is meant by "thats the C.E. in RACE!"



Andrew

[Gui Cavalcanti]

The Mech Techs are a big fan of "Measure once, cut twice." Our electrocube was supposed to be 4 in x 10 in x 10 in... it's currently 6 in x 12 in x 12 in and we barely fit everything in. We actually have a "top 10" list of engineering slogans on the back of our team shirts:

If at FIRST you don't succeed...
...use more velcro
...recharge the batteries
...bolt it down tighter
...blame programming (booo... hisssss)
...two words: more power
...try weight loss by DeWalt
...screw it in the OTHER way
(The last three are not engineering related)

[Amy Beth]

our engineers favorite, though they won't admit it:

"If it ain't broke...fix it till it is!!"

Seriously, after about five weeks of them messing, the students wanted to institute a "hands off" policy to keep them from ruining it. Oh well.

[DanLevin247]

Well...another one of ours should be...."Think before you do". This year, while putting come connectors into the aluminum of the base of our robot, come of the kids realized that a major part of the robot had been put on upsidedown, and backwards.

[mpking]

Really Awesome Creative Engineering?

That's just a guess

[Andrew Rudolph]

Really Awesome Creative Engineering?

Robotics And Creative Engineering

[DaBruteForceGuy]

I THINK MY NAME SHOULD SPEAK FOR ITSELF ON THIS SUBJECT!

For 6 straight weeks i was anchored down trying to advance on the teachings of the area's of BRUTEFORCE with everybody in my group.
so we havn't mad the motto but these come to mind....

-NO DON'T CUT THAT WIRE TIE!
-HER, LEMME TRY...... OK 4GET IT, CUT IT OFF!
-It's great, now DRILL A WHOLE IN IT!

and the occasional MATT FOLEY speach to keep everyone in line.

[Dan 550]

Red Green is the ultimate engineer. I always use the handyman's secret weapon, duct tape, as my primary fastener, at least as a pre-fastener. And if it ain't broke, you're not tryin. Quando Omni Flaunkus Moratati.
http://www.redgreen.com/images/3mlink.jpg
http://www.redgreen.com/images/worldred.gif

[Jim]

You missed Red's best saying:

"If the women don't find you handsome, they ought to at least find you handy"

(I heard someone get high and mighty about watching only public television because it is culterally enriching. So I asked, "Oh, you mean like 'Red Green'?")

The glass being twice as large as it needs to be is a good one.

Our team was MARGE (Mukwango Area Robotics Generate Excitement)

Not really an engineering saying, but one that I saw on a site for home builders and remodelers, "That's not a mistake, it's 'Rustic'."

And, of course, "I cut it twice and it's still too short."

[Brian C]

Actually I've seen a few different sayings over the years when it come to engineering.

Mechanical:

A person really only needs 2 tools: Duct Tape and WD40.....If it doesn't move - spray it and if it moves - Tape it!

And the ever popular

"If it don't fit - force it and if it breaks it needed to be replaced anyway!


Software:

That's not a bug....it's a feature!

[Mike Schroeder]

I got one


:cool: "If it's broken solder it if its not broken solder it anyway"


The kid that thought that up liked solder alot.!:D

[Andy A.]

"The belt sander is your friend"

"Friends don't let friends use setscrews"

On the subject of pnematics:

Team member 1 "I think we bet the piston in that last match and we're leaking out of the compressor valve"
Team member 2 "Find me a hammer and a vice"

On the subject of intricate drive train parts:

Team member 1 "Whats the dimesion tolerence on this part?"
Team member 2 "oh, about 1/4 of an inch or so, just use your thumbnail instead of those pesky mics"

-Andy A.

Edit: spelling, grammer

[Jnadke]

Our physics teacher has this sign hanging in his room:

What's black, sticky, and holds the universe together?
Duct Tape.

[DanLevin247]

"sharp things hurt"


"pee before you drill"

"sleep before you saw"

"swear before you cry"

[Katie Reynolds]

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it"
"That's not a flaw - it's a feature"

Oh and Jeremy - the saying in Basler's room is "what's dark on one side, light on the other and holds the universe together? Duct tape!" - I'm telling Basler you got it wrong! :D

- Katie

[Jim Giacchi]

In 2000 we built the robot that lowered a scissorjack to raise itself up and then could strafe side to side on the ramp to block opponents. The scissorjack was lowered by a screw being driven by the van-door motor. The plastic nut provided by Small parts to fit the screw was no strong and one of the seniors descided to retract the jack to far and crushed the nut the first time we tested it. After he realized he crushed the nut he asked what the problem was because he had done us a favor. Lets just say he did us a lot of "favors" that year.

[Jim Meyer]

Measure it with a micrometer, mark it with chalk, and cut it with an axe.

This is not an exact science.

[Ian Mackenzie]

If you're going to do it, do it right.
Simple may win.
Ugly may win. (But not if it's "uglier than Warren's brother".)
Don't build to tolerance!

I'm not so sure about the half-full glass...I mean, you could argue that the top half of the glass is wasted material but you could also argue that the extra space provides you with a nice margin of error and safety factor (allows more water to be added, and makes it less likely to spill the water already present).

-Ian Mackenzie
Woburn Robotics
http://www.team188.com

[Jnadke]

Originally posted by Katie_93
Oh and Jeremy - the saying in Basler's room is "what's dark on one side, light on the other and holds the universe together? Duct tape!" - I'm telling Basler you got it wrong! :D

- Katie

Nice try, but you have it wrong too...

"Duct tape is like the Force - it has a dark side and a light side and it holds the universe together."

-Jeremy :D

[ReijiH]

Our team's official slogan from last year;

"Measure once, cut three times, and go buy another peice."

And there are some Murphy's Law of Engineering....

You will never find tools you are looking for;
you will always find them when you are done with work and about to head home.

You will look all over the place for the parts or tool you saw few second ago;
you will, however, never notice that it's sitting right under your butt.

You try to "field fix" a broken parts;
it will take you a whole day to realise that you should've just went to the machine shop.

When everything is going all right, people will complement you;
it only means that something will awfully go wrong the next moment.

It often takes a entire crew of engineers to figure a fancy way to solve a problem;
it often takes one infant to come in to his daddy's room to point out a really obious (and much more sophisticated) solution.

Also, my signature...(Not exactly a slogan tho:p)

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Let us not forget that the missing tool is always in the last place you look.

[PsychoPhil]

I just read the new posts in this thread and I have to admit:

You guys totally made my day and cracked me up, thx...

Keep in touch guys, so long, Phil

[mpking]

Originally posted by Al Skierkiewicz
Let us not forget that the missing tool is always in the last place you look.

Actually, nobody every finishes the quote.


The Missing tool is always in the last place you look, because you stop looking when you find it.

[mpking]

If a tool is missing, and no one ever looks for it, is it lost?




---------------------------------------------------------------------------


BTW - I posted this after the message below me, so it's a response to the

"Why would you keep looking post"


____________________________________________

People in auto repair know this one:

This bolt won't come out, someone hand me the BlueWrench!

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Which implies..."Why would you keep looking?!?"

[Greg Ross]

Originally posted by mpking


People in auto repair know this one:

This bolt won't come out, someone hand me the BlueWrench!
I'm not in auto repair. I would appreciate an explanation. Does this have something to do with "blue" language?

[Jim]

blue wrench is the torch

[mpking]

Originally posted by gwross

I'm not in auto repair. I would appreciate an explanation. Does this have something to do with "blue" language?

You've got a stuck or rusted bolt and nut.

Take a Torch, and heat it up. Then let it cool.

The expansion of the metals (Nut and bolt) forces the nut to become slightly larger, allowing greater ease in removing the formally stuck bolt, when they cool, because the bolt will contract to it's (almost) orginal size.

This is where experiance comes into play, as I said, I've never done it, so I have not idea whether the bolt is usuable at this point, or if it's just junk.

This is usually used when removing exhaust systems, so all the hardware is easily replaceable.

[DaBruteForceGuy]

"IN ORDER TO SUCCESSFULLY FINISH ANY TASK MULTIPLY IT 10X!!!"


Even when i do use this slogan i manage to get myeself into a rut i can't get out of!

[Al Skierkiewicz]

To correct the earlier post so more people can get it.
"Hand me the blue tip wrench."
and yes, being part owner of a Merlin Muffler & Brake, I hear that a lot in the muffler business.
BTW most often the torch is used to just cut stuff away. Whenever possible, (On hardware outside) never reuse, always replace.

[EIROBOTICS86]

if it aint broke fix it or if it dont fit get a bigger Hammer

[kmcclary]

Old saying:
- "ALWAYS have a 'Plan B' in your back pocket..."

MY variant:

- "You always need a 'Plan B', AND enough time reserved to execute it!"

(This implies a known, FIXED deadline for Plan A's success, at which time you must start Plan B. If you have insufficient resources to do both in parallel, this implies a forced abandonment of Plan A.)

- Keith

[Adam Y.]

Hear I go with my favorite sayings:
From battlebots and this is the truth: Set screws suck!!!:)
From my physics teacher: Close enough.
Funny about the hammers talk hear is what my engineer said last year: I don't want you hitting the frame anymore with a hammer unless you tell me.

[pauluffel]

Our robot last had some, err...issues. Of course, the best way to fix this is hammers, and we had the perfect one to do this.
http://www.contractorstools.com/graphics/deaddeathstick2lrg.gif
Ths hammer is about the length from the tip of your elbow to the end of your middle finger. Notice the curved handle? That"s generally a feature of axes because it allows for more force at the cost of accuracy. Perfect for robots...

[RebAl]

red + black = fire

[DaBruteForceGuy]

I've used hammers identicle to that on the job site. But i didn't think it was big enough:rolleyes:


- Hey, my slogen comes from the jobsite as well....*C TITLE*

[RBrandy]

cut first, then measure

[Gope]

My personal favorite, which originated in Nasa

If it works then it dosen't have enough gadgets

[Aaron Lussier]

I heard this my second year on the team:

" Look at the screw from the nuts perspective"

- Chris Carnavale

[Mike Rush]

If precision does not work, use force.

[Mike Rush]

Engineering is the art of molding materials we do not entirely understand, into shapes we cannot really analyze, to withstand forces we cannot really assess, such that the public at large is unaware of the extent of our ignorance.

Anonymous:)

[BaysianLogik]

We just have KISS

[Adam Y.]

Hear is another one: Make sure the robot doesn't roll off the table.

[pauluffel]

A couple of acronyms that aren"t really slogans, but are used alot during design...
When we"re drawing a potential design on one of the boards, we explain it to everyone as we"re drawing. This leads to some drawings that don"t look quite right, and are then headed be the ubiquitous NTS (not to scale.) Once someone finshes their picture, they finally stop to look at it and decide to also add the letters POS next to NTS.

P.S. We also write POS on most prototypes because it"s very fitting.

[asher]

"for every complex system that fails there exists a simpler system that works"

my prof that i started with in FIRST painted this on a huge sign which now hangs in my lab, it will be with the 31ers forever

and as woodie told us all:

"set screws inhale audibly"

asher

[ChrisH]

Originally posted by Mike Rush
Engineering is the art of molding materials we do not entirely understand, into shapes we cannot really analyze, to withstand forces we cannot really assess, such that the public at large is unaware of the extent of our ignorance.

Anonymous:)


Which doesn't entirely fit with the "Stress Engineer's Motto":

When in Doubt
Make it Stout
From Something
You know About

I heard it from Bob Best, I have no clue where he got it from...

[Adam Y.]

"set screws inhale audibly"
lol He stole that from battlebots. :D This is quite odd but in physics class I managed to get a partially correct answer but doing to wrongs. You could say two wrongs sometimes make a right.

[Mark Hamilton]

The "set screws inhale audibly" quote has been around longer then I've been in FIRST, and far longer then Battlebots has been around. It used to be quite common for robot's to break their hubs in the middle of a match, ussually do to set screws. The robots would sit on the feild with the motors full blast and going nowhere. I haven't seen this happen in quite awhile.

[Adam Y.]

The "set screws inhale audibly" quote has been around longer then I've been in FIRST, and far longer then Battlebots has been around. It used to be quite common for robot's to break their hubs in the middle of a match, ussually do to set screws. The robots would sit on the feild with the motors full blast and going nowhere. I haven't seen this happen in quite awhile.
Yeah but robot combat is as old as first is and I've always thought the person who created it was the creator of biohazard. Of course when you've got enough people who have the same problem with set screws they probably all say that set screws suck.

[DanLevin247]

Originally posted by GregT


That said, we labled our robot front and back. We spent 90% of our time at nats broken, and 60 - 70% of that time at the top of the white devision. At NYC we left our shielding all over the field our first practice. at nats we left a chain on the field.



For OCCRA, an off season robotics league, I had a little fun with our lable maker, labling such things as "band saw" "grinder" "floor" "window" "tom" "tools" and most importantly, "robot"

[Matt Leese]

Originally posted by wysiswyg

Yeah but robot combat is as old as first is and I've always thought the person who created it was the creator of biohazard. Of course when you've got enough people who have the same problem with set screws they probably all say that set screws suck.
Actually, FIRST is a year older than any robotic combat that I've ever heard about. The FIRST Robotics Competition was started in 1992. The British version of Robot Wars was started in 1993. Battlebots didn't start until 2000 (if I remember correctly; it could've been 1999). I've heard the "set screws inhale audibly" quote for quite awhile. I think it's fairly accurate to say that Woody thought it up as opposed to stealing it from Battlebots. It also is very much in Woody's style (inhale audibly as opposed to suck). My bet is that Woody came up with it on his own.

Matt

[Stephanie]

"the persuader"
"if it doesn't fit, use the persuader. if it breaks, it needed to be fixed anyway"
"noooooo....i cut it twice and it's *still* too short!"

[rbayer]

"I can't program a limit switch if I don't have a freaking limit switch"

"It's hard to wire a robot without wire"

"Being awake for 42 hours only makes power tools more fun!"

"If that could break it, it needed fixing anyway" (after I stressed-tessed our scissor lift and snapped the main support in half).

"Software can't grind out a gearbox!"

"Just guess"

"So the weapons go through the treads, right?"

"Umm... is it supposed to only be able to turn?"

"Close enough"

[Jeff Waegelin]

"The hardest part about building the robot is figuring out what to build"

"Hmmm... it looks BETTER crooked"

"The wrong way is the right way" (in reference to previous quote)

I'll think of some more...

[Katie Reynolds]

Originally posted by rbayer
"If that could break it, it needed fixing anyway" (after I stressed-tessed our scissor lift and snapped the main support in half).

"Software can't grind out a gearbox!"


Hahahaha! Very nice :D

- Katie

[kmcclary]

Originally posted by Matt Leese

Actually, FIRST is a year older than any robotic combat that I've ever heard about. The FIRST Robotics Competition was started in 1992. The British version of Robot Wars was started in 1993. Battlebots didn't start until 2000 (if I remember correctly; it could've been 1999). I've heard the "set screws inhale audibly" quote for quite awhile. I think it's fairly accurate to say that Woody thought it up as opposed to stealing it from Battlebots. It also is very much in Woody's style (inhale audibly as opposed to suck). My bet is that Woody came up with it on his own.

Matt Actually, Robot Wars UK was mid 1997.

Robot Wars was conceived in 1992 by Marc Thorpe. For money he partnered with Profile Records for cash, and the first game was in the **US**, in 1994. You can read his version of the story at:
- http://www.marcthorpe.com/robot.html
However, due to a settlement with his old partners, it doesn't tell the WHOLE story...

According to the online histories (many of which are now severely edited), many people felt, Profile "stole it from him". The combatants supported Marc and boycotted Profile's events. Profile then took it to the UK in 1997, and invited US competitors to come THERE. (I actually received an invitation myself back then to make one for Profile. No way.) Everyone in the US still said "no". Profile then ran it with UK participants. Lawsuits happened both ways, to block Marc from starting a second contest, and to sue Profile for royalties. VERY messy.

Marc was driven to bankruptcy... Eventually the lawsuits were finished, and Marc moved on, but is no longer involved with Robot Wars. He FINALLY became free of all of the litigation THIS YEAR, so we may soon see more of Marc's concepts.

Here's a more complete timeline for Robot Wars, BattleBots, Robotica, Bot Bash, etc...:
- http://www.robotcombat.com/history.html
It is a FASCINATING read...

It would be nice to see the FIRST contest included, but this history is "geared" ;) more toward the "mayhem/gladiator" variety of robotic battle.

The original FIRST game was in 1992 with Maize Craze:
- http://www.usfirst.org/robotics/abr_art1.htm

BTW... They've removed the rules for all the old games. If anyone has a URL of archives of the old FIRST games and rules, please email me directly with it. Thanks!

Bottom line: FIRST can claim actual contests before both Robot Wars and BattleBots.

Now as to FIRST history, FIRST is NOT the original "robotics contest". Woodie Flowers was working at MIT and created the MIT 2.70 "Introduction to Design" class and contest, which involved robotic battle back in the 1980's. I believe it was a 12 or 15 week class. In 1987 Michael B. Parker at MIT made MIT 6.270, "the six week answer" to the 2.70 class.
- http://web.mit.edu/6.270/www/about/history.html
MIT 2.70 evolved into other classes around 1997, while MIT 6.270 is still around. The design for the Lego Mindstorm RCX brick comes from that series of classes! Other Universities have since copied the format.

I think of FIRST as the MUCH larger "industrial version" ;) of the 6.270 class. Automotive scale, vs LEGO scale... I'm let to believe Woodie and Dean got together and jointly conceived this contest around 1990 or so, but don't have the documentation on that just yet.

Any way you look at it though, this type of robot contest significantly predates the gladiator types.

- Keith

[Melancholy]

Not quite engineering, and not quite a slogan, but my Computer Science teacher said this on the first day of class.

"The purpose of commenting is that if you get fired, or hit by a bus, someone else can finish your program!"

:eek:

[Neal Probert]

"We'll be back"

Next year.

"Today is a good day to die"

Your last event of the season and you're going all out, finally. #%#%#%#% the batteries, #%#%#%#% the motors, ahead full ramming speed!

"But I just fixed it!"

It broke again, again and again. Even after testing, but it won't work right in competition.

"I'd rather have a bot in front of me than a frontal lobotomy."

I plagiarized that one ;)

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."

I'd rather have a ugly robot that worked really well, than a beautiful bot that couldn't do diddly squat. Has anybody got a beautiful bot that worked really good?

"What you see is what you get."

I've had to work with somebody else's ugly code, not a fun thing to do. If you work for me and don't produce clean, modular code easy to read with comments as required, you'll be fired.

[kmcclary]

Originally posted by Melancholy
Not quite engineering, and not quite a slogan, but my Computer Science teacher said this on the first day of class.

"The purpose of commenting is that if you get fired, or hit by a bus, someone else can finish your program!"

:eek: Actually that's not quite true... Try this version:

"The purpose of documentation is so that you know what the heck you were thinking when you are forced pick it up again a year or more later to either fix or upgrade it!"

Trust me, in industry if you aren't meticulous in your commenting, it can come back to haunt you, sometimes years later.

It's more than slightly embarrassing to be staring at your own design two years later trying to get to where your own head was at 3 AM that fateful "night before deadline" when you, cranked up on caffeine and desperately trying to get the darn thing out the door had some epiphany of insight. You can even remember thinking "Oh heck, this is really cool, non-obvious, it works, and (fateful last words) I'll just get around to documenting it sometime next week when I have "more time"... :)

The only thing worse is having your boss standing by your side waiting for your explanation of the design during this entire process... :D

SO...

"Document it like you know you're going to die next week, yet still care about it surviving."

Or, another point of view:

"Design and document it so OTHERS can understand it later, or you'll be passed over for promotion because now you're the ONLY person in the company ABLE to maintain it."

- Keith

[evulish]

"A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools"
- Douglas Adams

That's one of my favorite Douglas Adams quotes. And boy...does that relate to our team :D

[Ryan Foley]

I saw this in a post on another forum
when building a robot:
"cheap fast or good, pick 2"

"Better is the enemy of good enough" (it it works fine, dont try to make it better)

"90% of the work is done by 10% of the team"
-Alan Troshan, team 522 machinist

"It aint broke, it just lacks duct tape"
-Jim and Tim, Duct Tape Pros

From Timberlane Team meetings:
"That PVC goal pip is NOT a lightsaber"

"No you are NOT a jedi"

"It aint broke, it just lacks duct tape"
-Jim and Tim, Duct Tape Pros

[mpking]

Originally posted by kmcclary

It's more than slightly embarrassing to be staring at your own design two years later trying to get to where your own head was at 3 AM that fateful "night before deadline" when you, cranked up on caffeine and desperately trying to get the darn thing out the door had some epiphany of insight. You can even remember thinking "Oh heck, this is really cool, non-obvious, it works, and (fateful last words) I'll just get around to documenting it sometime next week when I have "more time"... :)- Keith

Been there....... Done that.......
Trust me. You don't want to be in that situation.

And it hasn't happen to me, but I have witnessed the "Your too vital at what you do" to be promoted fallout.

How about we amend it to:

"Comment just because you don't want to be the guy working on the code. You want to be the guy developing new exciting projects, not changing exisiting code.

[Dan 550]

No, You CAN NOT HOLD THE STICK BACKWARDS! It won't work right. I don't care what you think feels good. You'll forget which way is forward, let alone left and right! The program isn't going to be completely redone just because you think that way feels good. They're ergonomically designed, for crying out loud! Are your hands on backwards? NO! Then don't hold the stick backwards. And wear your glasses, we can't afford another bit like when Dave neglected to tell us that he was blind.

-Conversation between me and Jay, our driver for the day, as to why I wasn't going to have Steve, our programmer, program the robot again with "reverse left-right one stick aircraft-style drive" just so Jay could feel better.

[kmcclary]

Originally posted by mpking
How about we amend it to:

"Comment just because you don't want to be the guy working on the code. You want to be the guy developing new exciting projects, not changing existing code. You've got it exactly!

I know I don't want to be the one forced to hang around in "maintenance mode" when a new project challenge shows up at the office and it's up for grabs.

My secret: I comment the heck out of everything I do just so any junior member can take charge of it, freeing me for better things. :) The ones that "program for job security" are the ones that end up never getting a promotion. but hey, they got what they wanted! :D

My quote:

"Anyone that programs for job security may suddenly find they got their wish... at the expense of advancement..."

- Keith

[Mark Pierce]

Originally posted by Melancholy
Not quite engineering, and not quite a slogan, but my Computer Science teacher said this on the first day of class.

"The purpose of commenting is that if you get fired, or hit by a bus, someone else can finish your program!"


I can really appreciate the comments on this by Kieth and Mike.

As a software engineer for over 20 years, I think I'm safe in saying that this is an engineering slogan. Variations on this slogan have been around since the early days of computing. I suspect that even Charles Babbage, and certainly those working with him or studying his work, uttered similar words. The refinements presented here are great!

[chellyzee93]

I didn't make it do THAT! D:

[Greg Ross]

Originally posted by Mark Pierce

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by Melancholy
Not quite engineering, and not quite a slogan, but my Computer Science teacher said this on the first day of class.

"The purpose of commenting is that if you get fired, or hit by a bus, someone else can finish your program!"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


I can really appreciate the comments on this by Kieth and Mike.

As a software engineer for over 20 years, I think I'm safe in saying that this is an engineering slogan. Variations on this slogan have been around since the early days of computing. I suspect that even Charles Babbage, and certainly those working with him or studying his work, uttered similar words. The refinements presented here are great!
And don't believe the old myth that you can ensure your job security by making your code as unintelligible as possible (by not commenting, etc.)

[EStokely]

Among the favorites that we used in the build cycle

"If it was easy, I would have done it" (Usually used when directing a student towards a project that has no clear answer yet)

"Its OK, if you mess it up you just get to do it again"

"We'll fix that in programming"

"Sissor lifts suck"

And from my first year in this..

"why did they give us all these bearings?"



Hope everyone is raising enough money.
later

[kmcclary]

Oh yeah, I almost forgot... Last year, people kept suggesting adding more motors, actuators, or complex mechanisms simply to make things go down. I kept chanting this over and over in response until the students finally started finishing the phrase with me:

"Remember: Gravity is your friend... USE it.."

:D

- Keith

[RBrandy]

We didnt break it... We modified it.

[Katie Reynolds]

Originally posted by RBrandy
We didnt break it... We modified it.

Haha, that and:

"It's not a flaw ... it's a design feature!"

- Katie

[EricS-Team180]

...Never time to do it right, but always time to do it over ...

[dk5sm5luigi]

Here are a couple of quotes that my old team used to use back in 1997 when we had an Engineer (who helped us on his free time and was our only engineer) was on the team. He had these quotes:

"It is better to look Good than to be Good"
and
"It came to me in a stroke of mediocrity"
-Grant McStay

The team slogan also became "It's all Grant's fault" but that was mostly a team joke.

[chellyzee93]

It doesn't matter, we'll work that out later

[Tyler Olds]

"If it aint broke, don't fix it" and just to add a yupper (sp) touch, you cna always end the sentence with an "eh?"

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Tyler,
Unfortunately, only those of us in the upper midwest or Canada know the significance of you reference,eh?

[Gary Dillard]

In a pinch, any tool is a hammer.

In technical documentation, the term for beat it with a hammer is "gently mallotize"

Justification for an Engineering Cost Estimate - PDOOMA.

[Warren Boudreau]

I shudder to think what PDOOMA means.

Personally, my favorite has always been "Lefty Loosey, Righty Tighty."

[Katie Reynolds]

Originally posted by Team93FIRST
"If it aint broke, don't fix it" and just to add a yupper (sp) touch, you cna always end the sentence with an "eh?"

Tyler ... Newhouse ;)

Oh, and there are always the 7 P's

Prior
Proper
Planning
Prevents
Pretty
Poor
Performance

:D

- Katie

[kmcclary]

Justification for an Engineering Cost Estimate - PDOOMA. <chuckle> Around here, we call those "Brown Numbers" or a "SWAG". :) The Engineering quotes most often heard here on that subject are:

- "It's a Brown Number..."

- "I generated that answer using PDOOMA numerical data methods."

The latter of course sounds impressive. What always amazes me is half the time people simply nod wisely and go on, accepting that as a "scientific reason", because they can't admit they've never heard of "PDOOMA Methodology"... :)

However, if they do ask what "PDOOMA" means, you then get to define it with a straight face and enjoy their reaction... :D

For those that don't catch it, check at either http://www.acronymsearch.com or http://www.acronymfinder.com.

IMO, both acronym sites, along with http://yourdictionary.com are all "must haves" in a good set of "Reference" bookmarks.

- Keith

[Dave_222]

you only realy ever need 2 things in your tool box, a hammer to seperate things that shouldnt be together and duct tape to put things together that shouldnt be appart.

[kmcclary]

"For years I dreamed of becoming an Engineer, and now I are one..."

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Keith,
Our version of that is "All my life I couldn't even spell eng-a-near, now I are one!" Good one, I had almost forgotten.

[DaBruteForceGuy]

"All an enjineer really needs is his hands.. for it is ones hands that that are the tools of the brain"

and anyway,
it is ones hands that fabricate ones tools anyway...

[Tyler Olds]

Here is a way to order your files..... (this might be a little bit off)

1.First one
2. New one
3. Newer one
4. Newest one
5. The new newest one
6. The coolest new one
7. The cooler one
8. The one where you are at the point that you are sick of giving it names
9. Fricken a!
10. Gosh Golly darn dang eh?

[pauluffel]

One of my programming friend's...
"It's not a bug, it's an unadvertised feature..."

[Adam Y.]

"why did they give us all these bearings?"
I was saying the same thing but it was it was:
Why do we have so many shaft collars?
Why do we have so many bushings?
Why do we have so many springs?
I think have enough supplies to build two robots.
What is that?
Why is there a propane tank in the mechanical box?
Hey I didn't know a pulley was in 2001 bill of materials.
Why can't we standardize our tools, and fasteners?
Nm first has battlebots by two years.

[Ashley Weed]

(....kid enters room the drivers are practicing in...)
kid: can I drive the robot?
driver 1: NO!
Kid: why not?
driver 1: just, NO!
(...driver 1 goes to look inside robot....)
kid: I want to drive the robot!
driver 2: you were already told NO!
(..driver 2 goes to other room to get a tool for driver 1....)
...meanwhile, before driver 2 returns... the kid has grabbed ahold of the controls, and attmepted to drive away with the robot as driver 1's head is in the robot..) :rolleyes:

My new quote.... a possibility for my teams unofficial shirts this year... non-engineering, however, I apply it to FIRST:

"Who controls the past, controls the future; who controls the present, controls the past." - Orwell, 84

[Dr.Bot]

My favorite non FIRST slogan from Homer Hickam:

Passion, Planning, Perseverance. (What is needed for a FIRST team)



My favorite FIRST slogan (which we would put on all our 255 Robots):


"Robots are expected to survive vigorous interaction with other robots."

[mpking]

This thread is getting long, I can't remember (and I didn't look) if this was posted.

There 6 ways of fixing things that broke: (typical time line of a major componet)
1. Pre-Ship Date: We'll fix that next week, we may not use that component anyways.
2. Ship Date: What do you mean that never got fixed!? We'll fix it in the Pit
3. In the Pit Thursday: We'll fix that after we weight in
4. Later Thursday: We'll fix that after we shave 4 pounds off the robot, someone hand me a drill
5. Friday Morning: Hurry up! there singing the national Anthem, just throw some Duct Tape on it to hold it in place, and we'll fix it after our next round!!
6. Friday Afternoon: We Fixed It!! we can score now!

[mpking]

There are several Grades of repairs that are made in the pits:

1. Professional Grade: Part broke/didn't perform. Whole subsystem if ripped off robot, redesigned, new parts machined, and you still make it to your next match in one piece.

2. Journeyman Grade: Same as above, but you didn't finish before your next match, but your 2nd match has the new system.

3. Normal Grade: We had spare parts, just changed it out and awaayy we go.

4. Typical Grade: ZipTie/DuckTape/30 Second Expoy it back together. Add it to the checklist to inspect before and after everyround. Drive gentel with it, we don't want to stress it.

5. We in the finals (pre 3 team in finals rule) Get all the pieces back on the bot somehow, and "Full Ramming Speed!"

[Gary Dillard]

Tools to be used with Mike's Grades of repair:

Professional: Bridgeport at Competition Machine Shop

Journeyman: Table Mounted Mill at Pit

Normal: Saber Saw and Hand Drill

Typical: Hack Saw and Dremel Tool

We in the Finals: Any sharp object (or heavy blunt object) within arm's reach

[Morgoth]

If duct tape isn't the answer, your not asking the right question.

[Jnadke]

"The probability of someone watching you is proportional to the stupidity of your actions."

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Murphy's Fifth Law
Selective Gravitation

"A dropped tool will fall where it will do the most damage."

Robot corollary to above: On the way to the Einstein Field for semi-finals.
Happy Thanksgiving,

[mtaman02]

if it don't fit, get a hammer and force it into place, if it breaks then it wasn't meant to go in the hole the first place.


theres the right tool for every job.


some say the glass is half full, others say its half empty, i say if it breaks it don't matter if it was half empty or full b/c its all over the place

[mpking]

Originally posted by Mike522
some say the glass is half full, others say its half empty, i say if it breaks it don't matter if it was half empty or full b/c its all over the place

The Glass is Half Full - Optimist
The Glass is Half Empty - Pessimist
The Glass is too Big - Engineer

[camtunkpa]

SAFETY GLASSES SAVE LIVES!

It's not broken, it lacks duct tape

You can never have enough surgical tubing

[Jim Giacchi]

Who needs safety glasses when your team issues stainless steel contacts!!

[DaBruteForceGuy]

Originally posted by Jim Giacchi
Who needs safety glasses when your team issues stainless steel contacts!!

LOL!

Who needs safety glasses when when your team issues nothing but scissors and a pair of dykes?

[Ed Sparks]

Tighten it 'till it strips ........ then back it off a quarter turn. :D

[Mongoose]

I seem to remember from last year...

"If it ain't smokin', it ain't broken!"

-Eric

[Katie Reynolds]

"Umm ... guys? The motor just released the 'magic white smoke'!!" :confused:

- Katie

[kmcclary]

Originally posted by Katie Reynolds
"Umm ... guys? The motor just released the 'magic white smoke'!!" :confused:
- Katie Ah, yes...

"ALL technology is run on 'Magic Smoke' contained within the device. As everyone knows, whenever the magic smoke is released, the device ceases to function."

- Keith

[bigqueue]

When in doubt, throw it out!

When in doubt, test it out!

One hand in your pocket with high voltage.

Don't let the smoke out!

Flame-on!

[Greg Ross]

Originally posted by Ed Sparks
Tighten it 'till it strips ........ then back it off a quarter turn. :D Or until the head pops off. (I've only done that once at robots.)

[DaBruteForceGuy]

Originally posted by gwross
Or until the head pops off. (I've only done that once at robots.)

My "Brute"al attempts at tightening or untightening bolts have resulted in this specific instance on several occasions!!

[FotoPlasma]

"If it doesn't fit, force it. If it breaks, it was going to break anyway."

(I first heard this from Stokely, but I've seen it in a few different places, so I'm not sure of who to attribute it to.)

[Alexander McGee]

hmmm

if its working, make another while you wait for it to break

dont touch it, or ill break your fingers

women never play fair

the early bird gets the best parking spot

[Ashley Weed]

Originally posted by magnasmific
hmmm


women never play fair



hehehe... I think I have found a new motto to live by!
(conversation)
guy: Why did you push that goal out of the zone?
me: Because I felt like it.
guy: That wasn't very fair or nice.
me: Women never play fair!

[skrussel]

A few years back, Woodie admonished us :

"Don't let the smoke get out!" I love that one.

[chellyzee93]

You're off the team!
You're fired!

[Greg Ross]

Originally posted by skrussel
A few years back, Woodie admonished us :

"Don't let the smoke get out!" I love that one.
Actually, it's the MAGIC smoke you're not supposed to let out. I guess it's ok to the the other smoke out. ;)

[The]

When ever anyone asked how long to cut something, we would reply 'yea'. We found this could apply to distance, time, or mass.

[UCGL_Guy]

when asked How we are doing are normal reply is
"All we lack is finsishing up"

[kmcclary]

We were chatting at the last team meeting when I came up with a couple of new ones to share:

"Take a man to a FIRST contest and he's entertained for three days. Teach a man to build a FIRST robot, and he's out of your hair for six weeks a year..."

"You know your team's not communicating well when you're invited to appear on Springer..."

- Keith

[Gary Stearns]

Our Engineer says …(insert name) "You did exactly what I said… NOW let’s…

Here we go again Whoo Hoo !!!! Can't wait to start building, just gotta get through all the meetings !!




When I am working on a problem I never think about beauty.
I only think about how to solve the problem.
But when I have finished, if the solutions not beautiful,
I know it is wrong.
-R. Buckminster Fuller, engineer,
designer, and architect (1895-1983)

[Edward Debler]

Here is a quote about engineering that dates back to 1976:

ENGINEERING:

"Engineering is the art of modeling materials we do not wholey understand, into shapes we can not precisely analyze, so as to withstand forces we can not properly assess, in such a way that the public has no reason to suspect the extent of our ignorance"


Dr. A. R. Dykes
British Institute of Structural Engineers
(1976)

[Edward Debler]

Here's another quote from Winston Churchill that also works for engineering:

"Success Is going From Failure to Failure Without Losing Enthusiasm"

Winston Churchill

[Edward Debler]

One more quote that works for engineering:

"WHEN SEARCHING FOR REASONS WHY THINGS GO WRONG,

NEVER RULE OUT SHEER STUPIDITY!"

(AUTHOR UNKNOWN)

[Adam Y.]

When technology fails, as it will at the wrong time.

Duct tape and bubble gum rules the universe....

[Jon K.]

Mr. Debler, There is an edit function so that you do not have to post replies to yourself within 24 hours(I think) of the original post.

[Edward Debler]

Albert must have also been an engineer since he has been quoted for things that apply to them:

"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
- Albert Einstein

"Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world."
- Albert Einstein

"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds."
- Albert Einstein

"The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them."
- Albert Einstein

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
- Albert Einstein

And my favorite:

"Things should be as simple as possible, but not simpler"
- Albert Einstein

[kmcclary]

One that got a few chuckles around here:

"The only thing more dangerous than a Programmer with a screwdriver is a Hardware Designer with the root password..."

(FYI, "root" is a unix system's "God" account, who has privileges to do ANYTHING to the system and/or other users...)

- Keith

[MacZealot]

Stand within 40 feet of our robot at your own risk!:D

[Kristophe85]

"If a Dremel can't fix it, it isn't worth fixing"

__________________________________

Also, our team had a three inch open ended wrench.. we often heard:

"Somebody get the wrench"

[rbayer]

A few more I forgot:

"Excuse me while I run the other direction"

"NO!"

"Set Screws Inhale Audibly" --Wody Flowers

"If at first you don't succeed, maybe you shouldn't be trying."

"None of us is as dumb as all of us" --Despair, Inc.

"Shhh... It's thinking" (refering to computer)

"Everybody Clear! Where's Mark?"

"I meant to do that"

[maDGag]

good enough

[Neal Probert]

Digging into my vast collection of computer humor collected in the past 25 years, I find a few morsels appropriate for us:

Most computer problems are caused by a loose nut between the chair and the keyboard. [Still looking for other nut and bolt jokes]

Q. How many programmers does it take to change a light bulb (battery, victor, motor, ...)?
A. None, it's a hardware problem.
[And a million others]

Q. What's another name for the "Intel Inside" sticker on a Pentium?
A. The warning label.
[There are more Pentium jokes from when they had that floating point bug]

What will you do if your robot says, "Will I dream?".

Q. What language do all programmers know very well?
A. Profanity

Q. What is a robot's favorite drinking song?
A. 99 Bottles of oil on the wall

Clarke's Third Law: Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
[That's why the smoke is magic, because afterwards your technology is indistinguishable from junk]

Murphy's Fourth Law: If there are several things that can go wrong at once, the one thing that will do the most damage, will.

Murphy's Law of Thermodynamics: Things get worse under pressure.

This is a story about People named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody's job. Everyone though Anybody could do it but Nobody realized that Everybody would not do it. It ended up that Everyone blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.

[Imagine Clint Eastwood is a programmer, holding his Smith & Wesson, of course]
"Go ahead, make one more change!"

Windows are a pane in the glass.
[I have many other Windows jokes, and some are on the back of my van]

I can C!

Aye Matey, if I be a software pirate, what makes you think I'd admit it?

As a programmer and a poet, I write in rhyme, so I can go from baud to verse.

Chip of Fools

I/O, I/O, off to work we go.

On a clear disk, I can seek forever.

[Brandon Martus]

Originally posted by Neal Probert

Most computer problems are caused by a loose nut between the chair and the keyboard.

Ahh yes, the all too common PEBCAK error.

Problem
Exists
Between
Chair
And
Keyboard

[Brian C]

Ahh yes, the all too common PEBCAK error.

Problem
Exists
Between
Chair
And
Keyboard

I believe this is also related to the, all to common:

I D Ten Tee error.

More understandable when written properly it looks like:

ID10T

One of THE most common computer problems known to man.

[Digo]

there's also BIOS:

Bicho Ignorante Operando o Sistema

but that doesn't make much sense if you don't speak portuguese, so just forget it. ;)

[kmcclary]

Originally posted by Digo
there's also BIOS:
- Bicho Ignorante Operando o Sistema
but that doesn't make much sense if you don't speak Portuguese, so just forget it. ;) If I read that correctly it's something like: "Ignorant Animal Operating the System", right?

That's great... :D

Is that a big saying "way down south" there?

- Keith

[johnscans]

"dont trust dan"

[johnscans]

"dont trust dan"

[HolyMasamune]

Friends don't make friends draw

[SuperJake]

Meet The Negotiator. It is a lead sledge hammer that dwarfs all other one-handed sledge hammers. When something doesn't fit right, you'll generally hear the following:

<The User>"Blast! This jobbie [pronounced "job-e"] is stuck! Someone get me The Negotiator!"

<From someone supervising the job>"SEND IN THE NEGOTIATOR!"

<From deep in the shop>"We're sending someone in to negotiate!"

<The User><WHAM!>"Okay, that got it!"

[SuperJake]

Originally posted by mpking
There are several Grades of repairs that are made in the pits:

1. Professional Grade: Part broke/didn't perform. Whole subsystem if ripped off robot, redesigned, new parts machined, and you still make it to your next match in one piece.


I nominate the MOE Pit crew as Progessional grade. During the Philadelphia Alliance Regional, both of MOEHawk's wings sustained damage. The right wing was twisted completely backwards rendering it useless, the left wing was moderatly twisted, and we only had 15min before the next match (note.. after 5min in the pits, they started calling us to be in the queue line).

The pit crew was able to completely replace the right wing along with all sub-systems AND bend the left wing back into working order within the 15min and we were able to deploy, grab all three goals, and held ground the entire 1:53 (after latching down) against 2 robots with minimal support from our allie. We won the match with 0qps because the 'enemy alliance' pulled out of the end zone and blocked our allie from getting into their zone.

Go MOE's Pit Crew!

[FAKrogoth]

Fundamental rule of Engineering: "The more complex it is, the more likely it is to fail."

"e^x dy/dx e^x dx.
cos, 1/cos, cos/sin, sin, pi." - excerpt from the Rose-Hulman cheer

"Do you know the Muffin fan . . ."
"The Muffin Fan?"
"The Muffin Fan!!" - will someone PLEASE stop my team from saying this?

"Just build it and let me look at it, and I'll draw it!" - what I said last year

"My ship works better when I kick it . . ." - Cowboy Bebop

"Your tax dollars at work" - informal name of our robo (in reference to our NASA grant)

"Never underestimate the power, number, or magnitude of stupid people." - me

[Doug]

oh and my ever famous motto
"dont stop till you hear glass breaking"
that can be applied to so many things whether it be parking or general shenanigans

[MBF]

What does an engineer use for birth control?
-Their personality.

Team Member: "There are no attractive women in this room."
Female Team Member: "Guess you're right. You do have a larger rack than I do."

Wearing Camo Labcoat "Alright you newbies, this here is Oakwood Robotics 992, the best of the best. We are gonna do something this year, and you are not going to mess up this man robotics club. Do you understand me maggots!"

"I think we need to do aerodynamic tests on the boxes."
"Oooh! Oooh! Can I throw it now?"

"The physics don't allow that."
"But it's so cool."

[Petey]

Parkinson's Law:

"A project will increase or decrease the time needed to complete it to fill exactly the time alloted for it."

--Petey

[Joe Matt]

It's not what you know, but what you are willing to learn. ~Me

[Doug]

oh and my motto for life "THINK the safe way is the best way"

[scuba_sm]

Our software doesn't have bugs, it simply develops random features....


If it falls off, it obviously wasn't important, or it would have been attached better....

It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye...then it's fun and games in the dark...

-Steve

[TommyT]

I've always liked

theres never enough time to do it right, but theres plenty of time to do it twice


and


if its not broke, theres not enough features

[harveyboy2]

if something doesn't fit, I usually just say you have to lie to it a little bit.

[sanddrag]

It'll find a happy place.

BAH = Big @$$ Holes - Allows for some slop for everthing to fit perfectly every time.

If it doesn't fit you didn't drill the holes big enough.

Looks straight to me.

If there's no tolerance listed, just assume it's a quarter inch or so.


Hey, can we get a list of all these on CD sort of like the spotlight list?

[TerryDolan]

Our team particularly likes to use the phrase PFM - Pure Flipping Magic to describe anything that has anything at all to do with electronics. We also use the "it can be fixed in software" phrase all the time during our fabrication and design.

I really liked Woddie's "Mother nature does not give partial credit" during the kickoff.

In the fab shop we also go with "Slop is good" - at least to an extent. On the same token, if something is too tight to fit together we say that it was machined accurate to the nearest atom. When a part comes out too inaccurate to use we say that it was made with ¼ inch accuracy on an 1/8 inch part.

We also always result back to the simple K.I.S.S. principal.

[60s_Puma]

"worry about thie ounces and let the pounds worry about themselves."
-George Williams
60's machinist

What sipmle logic right, and the best part, it works 60 has never had to make a robot that looks like swiss cheese thanks to this philosophy.

[FAKrogoth]

What sipmle logic right, and the best part, it works 60 has never had to make a robot that looks like swiss cheese thanks to this philosophy. [/B]
Aaah, you guys just don't have macheesemo

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Here's one from our transmitter supervisor...
"Remember, at one time, even Thomas Edison didn't know what electricity was!"

[ChewyMasterFlex]

Duct tape will save us all
and
Destroy them All! Rise to the Communist Manifesto! Rise and Shine!
and
Try, Try Again, and if all else fails, destroy all evidence that you tried.
and (refer to FIRST slogan below):D

[soezgg]

one of our main slogans last year was (in unison):

CLOOOOOOSEEEEEEEE ENOOOOUUUUUUUGH!!!!!!!!


this years will be:


IF IT AINT DONE TWICE, IT AINT DONE RIGHT!!!

[Jim]

If you don't have enough time to do it right,

How will you have enough time to do it over?

[johnscans]

zip ties fix everything. . . . for a time

[Forsaken85]

This one is from the 442nd regiment american japanese during the second world war and a favorite of mine. "Go for Broke" this is a classic and tells what we all do to find the problems of our robots. Anyone disagree with me? Latter From guy with black and red yankees cap. Go team 303:cool:

[Harrison]

In regards to gearboxes...

"You have to design these things? Since when?"

lol

[Timinator]

My personal favorite.. "If it ain't broke, fix it till it is"

[Parks]

Our general motto is,
If all else fails use BFI... Brute Force and Ignorance

[DaBruteForceGuy]

Originally posted by Parks
Our general motto is,
If all else fails use BFI... Brute Force and Ignorance
I seconde! :rolleyes:

[joe gem]

if it doesnt fit the first time, use a bigger hammer
if that doesnt work, u didnt hit it hard enough

[Manoel]

Originally posted by kmcclary
If I read that correctly it's something like: "Ignorant Animal Operating the System", right?

That's great... :D

Is that a big saying "way down south" there?

- Keith

Yeah, how did you know? Did a search on Google? :D

[Matthew936]

THIMK

[Skabana159]

159 has a couple that I'm pretty fond of.

My favorite, slightly edited:
"Who the [blazes] keeps plugging in the [blazes] light?"

When one of my programmers told me the program was "done:"
"We don't even have a robot built yet! The program won't be 'done' until the robot is on the field, and even then it will only be 'done' for 2 minutes!"

Of course, "Hand me that persuader!"

When asked, "where did you get the speed for that motor," I usually reply, "A PDOOMA graph, of course."

I'm sure there are a bunch that I'm forgetting, too.

[Cheese Head]

My favorite, as well as my programming slogan.
KISS: Keep It Simple Stupid

[Blaster]

You Guys Have Made My Day.
I think There Should Be More Posts Like This

[kmcclary]

Originally posted by Manoel
Yeah, how did you know? Did a search on Google? :D Nope. Didn't think to look there! I'll have to remember that.

Obligatory foreign language Engineering Slogan (Hmmm... Let's try composing something 'FIRST-relevant' in Portuguese today...):

- "Errar é Humano. Arredondar é Basic Stamp..."

(To err is human. To round off is Basic Stamp...)

Was that close? :D

- Keith

[Manoel]

Originally posted by kmcclary
Was that close? :D

- Keith

Correct! :)
Do you actually speak Portuguese? Where did you learn it?

To keep it on topic, try this one:

Se a mensagem não estiver clara, aumente o brilho da tela.

[sanddrag]

Originally posted by Manoel
To keep it on topic, try this one:

Se a mensagem não estiver clara, aumente o brilho da tela.

If the message is not clear, adjust the brightness from the screen.

Is that it?

[kmcclary]

Originally posted by Manoel
To keep it on topic, try this one:
Se a mensagem não estiver clara, aumente o brilho da tela. Originally posted by sanddrag If the message is not clear, adjust the brightness from the screen.

Is that it? Hmmm... I'd think that it should be "If the message is not clear, adjust the brightness OF the screen". However, I'm not sure... Is there a "feminine" connotation to it, like "if HER message is unclear"?

Originally posted by Manoel, but referring to the previous quote
Correct! :)
Do you actually speak Portuguese? Where did you learn it? Sorry, not really. I just happen to dabble in languages (computer and human). But I have heard it before. I'm fortunate enough to live in a college town where people come from all over the world speaking different tongues.

Luckily, Portuguese is a Latin descendant, and fairly close to both French and Spanish, so the written version is not TOO hard for me to parse out (given LOTS of time). But I'd be totally lost if it was spoken to me conversationally (especially at normal speed), or I had to puzzle out more than a snatch of it at a time without a dictionary for the unusual words.

As I sometimes say, "I know enough of several languages to get myself INTO trouble, but not necessarily enough to get myself OUT of it!" ;)

One last crack at Portuguese, then I'm done. I'm going WAY out on a limb this time... Here's one you do NOT want to hear from your teammates during a break at the "2013 International FIRST Finals" in Brazil... ;)

- "POR FAVOR promessa você nunca requisitará o jantar da equipe em Portuguese outra vez..."

("PLEASE promise you'll never try to order the team's dinner in Portuguese again...")

Did I come close? :D

OOC, do the Engineering Slogans from this thread translate well into Portuguese, or are some too idiomatic to work?

This has been fun! Thanks!

- Keith

[Matthew936]

Here are just a few from us at team 1158

If it works take the credit
If it fails blame the engineers

American parts Russian parts all made in Taiwan

I am a responsible guy, if anything breaks i am usually responsible

Size does count

Why is it smoking?
it's not on fire, yet!

What does this do?
oops!!!

What is that strange grinding sound?

No you can't drive

which direction does this go in?

hmm the red wire or the black wire?
ahh whats the difference just choose one.

measure twice, cut once, get the hammer

You nod your head, I'll hit it with a hammer

Will post more when they come to mind

[Greg Perkins]

how about, N.F.G

hehe, its either a Non Functional Gear or... No -------- Good

Bad

[kmcclary]

"FIRST: We take young human beings, born in captivity, educate them in science and technology, and re-release them into the wild." -Keith McClary

"Hey! Don't knock Dean Kamen. Inventors are often well off. Remember, the inventor of the hay bailing machine sure made a bundle..." -Keith McClary

"Of course we can build that! Remember, a pessimist's blood type is always b-negative."

"Always go the extra mile... It's never crowded."

"Sure Cinderella was lousy at sports, but what did you expect? She only had a pumpkin for a Coach..."

"Your teammates need YOU. You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person."

"Experience is a wonderful thing. It enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again."

"Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once..."

"All the water in the world cannot sink the smallest ship unless it gets inside."

"There is ALWAYS a way... Thinking of it before you NEED to is the REAL trick..."

"Committment can be illustrated by a breakfast of Ham and Eggs: The chicken was involved, the pig was committed..."

"What's a Trebuchet? Why, it's a primitive form of overhead projector..." -Keith McClary

"We do not rise to the level of our expectations, but fall to the level of our training."

"Counting in binary is just like counting in decimal... if you are all thumbs..."

"He's got a magnet!!! Everybody BACKUP!!!!"

"What's a 'Maintenance Free Battery'?" "That means it's impossible to fix...."

"What boots up must come down."

(...And here are some Week Six laments for you to use if it's not going as you wish and your frustration level rises: :D )

"If it weren't for STRESS I'd have no energy at all..."

"You know, some days it just doesn't pay to gnaw through the straps..."

"Federal Expresso: When you absolutely, positively have to stay up all night to finish the robot..."

[Katie Reynolds]

Heh, my math teacher told us today:

"It doesn't matter what you failed to practice yesterday, or what you are going to practice tomorrow. Now is now. You have only this moment."

He said that in regards to playing basketball ... but I think it works for FIRST matches too! :D

- Katie

[Cory]

(dunno is this has been used before)

1. That? oh we'll fix that in the programming

2. is that the right tool for the job?

3. That wasn't supposed to happen it must be a programming error!

thats all that I can think of at the moment

Cory

[dwolf]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by TommyT
[B]I've always liked

theres never enough time to do it right, but theres plenty of time to do it twice


this also applies to G W bush

[Rook]

It's not really a saying, but we call anything that isn't made nice and solid; "pansy-$@#$@#$@#." The saying began last year, or the year before, when one of the engineers brought in some washers. He said, "I got these pansy-$@#$@#$@# washers here." After that, the phrase has stuck.

We also have a running joke about "Wayne's nuts," but I won't go into that one. ;)

[Edit] Oops, I guess I got filterized. The censored word begins with an 'a' and ends with an 's'. You can figure it out from there. It's not too bad.

[srjjs]

Originally posted by Cory

2. is that the right tool for the job?

They always tell you to use the right tool for the job, but the wrong tool does it so much better.

[AlbertW]

"If it fits, use it." -me, using a torx 10 bit for a 3 mm hex hole :D

[Marc P.]

It's all about "love taps" with the hammer.... "don't worry robot, this won't hurt a bit... I just have to get the bearings that expanded and jammed while welding out..."


A part in place each day keeps the engineers at bay.


sleep = Sacrifice Livelyhood for Every Engineer Please.


The pen is mightier than the sword, but the bandsaw can chop them both.

[kacz100]

Close enough for engineering!

[kmcclary]

"When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail..."

[Nick Seidl]

That's just the thing about plastic or brass gears; they tend to morph into plastic or brass washers real fast.

[sprchal]

"Don't think, just drill"

"Guess which finger I'm going to show you?"

[Nick Seidl]

Originally posted by sprchal
"How many breakers must a robot blow, before it will get to the ramp...?

The answer my friend is blowing in the wind...

[J2Kraatz]

On my team we have a saying"Failure is not an option" and "If duct tape can't fix it neither can all kings horses and all the kings men"

[taran86]

"If it jams...force it, if it breaks...it needed fixing anyway"

"dont force it, get a bigger hammer"

and one everyone has heard..."measure with a micrometre, mark it with chalk, and cu with a chainsaw"

[tonyargote]

"Opps"

[scuba_sm]

If it ain't broke, you ain't tryin'

(From the best rolemodel anyone can have.... Red Green)

-S cubed

[Vincent Chan]

Picked this one up along the way, but I love it:

You know you're an engineer if you have no life & can prove it mathematically.

[ItsPat]

Why the *%$#@&#(*$ code wont work::D
'Anything that happens, happens.

Anything that, in happening, causes something else to happen, causes something else to happen.

Anything that, in happening, causes itself to happen again, causes itself to happen again.

It doesnt necesarily do it in chronological order, though.'

-Douglas Adams

And of course, in a 8x8 pit area, 'too many cooks in the kitchen ruin the meal'

[Katy]

Another kind of BIOS error: burrice insistente do operador de sistemas (insistent stupidity of the systems operator)

"The robot is half a pound overweight...that's it CJ no more ones in the code zeros only..."
"...but zeros have more surface area"

(In a loud and very official voice) "disable switch on!"
"...that means it's off right?"

"I think I stuck it in one of the bins"

[AlbertW]

Originally posted by Katy
"I think I stuck it in one of the bins"

reminds me of our predicament in the robotics room. we had a really BIG TABLE in the middle of the room where ALL the parts and tools were

if you were ever looking for something, and someone said "yeah. it's on the table. " you would immediately get a very scared look in your eyes, and go enlist some freshmen to help you for the next hour or so while you rummaged through EVERYTHING on the table (giant pile)

[Kris Verdeyen]

I just heard this one at nationals:

As we were replacing a broken belt and a bad key in (opposite sides of) our robot's drive train, we found out that we had been picked. I said to our driver, who at that moment was lying on his back in a pile of tools underneath a robot with no wheels, "Looks like we got our date for the prom."

To which he responded, "Yeah, but we have nothing to wear."

That cracked me up.

[Matt Attallah]

Well, for our team, we had "Our Robot Sucks."

Literally, it did. (We created a vacuum using the pneumatic cylinders)

[Katy]

Originally posted by Aonic
reminds me of our predicament in the robotics room. we had a really BIG TABLE in the middle of the room where ALL the parts and tools were

if you were ever looking for something, and someone said "yeah. it's on the table. " you would immediately get a very scared look in your eyes, and go enlist some freshmen to help you for the next hour or so while you rummaged through EVERYTHING on the table (giant pile)

We had something we named last year "the closet of unspeakable horrors." Take a guess what that place is like, its got parts of Rainmaker 1 back in there (from 4 years ago).

[Vincent Chan]

From the book Syrup by Maxx Barry--

"I read somewhere that the average adult has three million-dollar ideas per year."

"So everybody's got ideas. Ideas are cheap. What's unique is the conviction to follow through: to work at it until it pays off. That's what separates the person who thinks I wonder why they can't just make shampoo and conditioner in one? from the one who thinks Now, should I get the Mercedes, or another BMW?"

Gets ya thinking, don't it?

[Carolyn Duncan]

To paraphrase Ken K, "FIRST isn't about building robots that can compete. It's about building people who can go out into society and produce something that is worth while."

[Solace]

"If it works, its obviously not complicated enough"

[Kyle]

when ever some one says something like, "you can't do that" or "that can't fit in that space" or "I bet you wont...."
my response is always

"Is that a challenge..."

[Joe3]

Originally posted by Kyle
when ever some one says something like, "you can't do that" or "that can't fit in that space" or "I bet you wont...."
my response is always

"Is that a challenge..."

Joe: "You (Kyle) won't jump in the pool with your clothes on."
Kyle: "Is that a challange?"
Joe: "Yup."

Kyle walks around with wet boots for the next three days at nationals.

[Joe Matt]

The Law of Need:

If you go to a store looking for something you NEED, it won't be there. If you pass by a store that you think won't have it, it will.

The Law of Asking:

The one person you ask won't know, the one you don't ask will.

[118 Tech]

"Everytime you integrate, god kills a kitten."

Somethign to think about.

Not really an engieering one but if you are going for an engineering degree, you will be killing kittens by proxy alot.

Credit to my Cal 3 Prof, apparently some people in the dept have some poster with this on it.

[Erin Rapacki]

The Engineer Postulate:

Time Expected x 3 = Time Actual

-I noticed that if i needed something done in a day, it was done in 3 days
-If i said meet me in an hour, it was usually dragged onto 3 hours later

so use this to your advantage, if you need something done in an hour, say you need it in 20 minutes!

It works so well!

ByE

erin

[Joe Matt]

Engineering Rule #20423a

It will take 5x as many newbies to complete something than a seasoned vet, yet they will still do it wrong.

Engineering Rule #1394k

No matter how good you are in math, you always will have a mistake that you missed.

[Kyle]

Originally posted by Joe3
Joe: "You (Kyle) won't jump in the pool with your clothes on."
Kyle: "Is that a challange?"
Joe: "Yup."

Kyle walks around with wet boots for the next three days at nationals.


Ha, they were only wet for 2 days, i took off my water prof watch and my MOE bandanna but not the boots, meh, it was nice having that squeaking sound when i walked around.

[kmcclary]

Not really a "slogan" per se, but IMHO an interesting commentary on the entire fields of Science and Engineering. BTW... Consider that this quote comes from 19th Century:

"By his machines man can dive and remain under water like a shark; can fly like a hawk in the air; can see atoms like a gnat; can see the system of the universe of Uriel, the angel of the sun; can carry whatever loads a ton of coal can lift; can knock down cities with his fist of gunpowder; can recover the history of his race by the medals which the deluge, and every creature, civil or savage or brute, has involuntarily dropped of its existence; and divine the future possibility of the planet and its inhabitants by his perception of laws of nature." - Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803-1882, U.S. essayist, poet, and philosopher, Letters and Social Aims, "Resources" (1876)

- Keith

[Eric Reed]

kmcclary, this one was GOLD and bears repeating:

> All the water in the world cannot sink the smallest ship unless it gets inside


Now for my own (stolen) slogan...does no one else say "Make it So?"

And my original...if it looks cheesy, it is cheesy. Sorry poofs.

Eric.

[shyra1353]

Originally posted by Al Skierkiewicz
Let us not forget that the missing tool is always in the last place you look.

of course it is always in the last place you look... why would you keep looking after you have found it??

[Matt Attallah]

"God made integers, all else is the work of man" - David M. Bryer - Engineer on Team 5

[AlbertW]

"Physics is like sex. It has its uses, but that's not why we do it."

- Richard Feynman

:D

now replace "Physics" with "Robotics" :yikes:

[miketwalker]

"No matter what breaks in the machine, it's always the programmer's fault" -Mike Walker

[EricS-Team180]

...yeah Mike

...and some times it really is :D

[charlie_grr]

Our team doesn't really have any things to help rookies learn how to build stuff, but one thing is for sure on our team, it is ALWAYS Dash's fault.

This is Dash, our driver.

[charlie_grr]

Originally posted by AlbertW
"Physics is like sex. It has its uses, but that's not why we do it."

- Richard Feynman

:D

now replace "Physics" with "Robotics" :yikes:

WOW! My brother is majoring in physics at Cal Poly San Luis and he bought my dad a shirt that had that same quote on the back of it. And that quote is very, very true.

Here's Richard Feynman
http://www.th.physik.uni-frankfurt.de/~jr/gif/phys/feynman.jpg

[Arrowsmith]

My unofficial engineering slogan is:

"Well, if it doesn't work, then we're..um....pretty screwed"

Also I include everything said on goodquotes.com

[AlbertW]

haha, we had "measure twice, cut once," but at sacramento we had 2 groups of people working on shortening the same piece of metal

basically, i told someone to get to work shortening it, and then started working on it myself with another person. after we were done, while we weren't looking, they shortened it by the same amount.

(btw, thanks BCP for saving us from that little incident)

measure 4 times, cut twice ;)



oh, and our robotics advisor is leaving :sob: :( and he happens to be a physics teacher, so we gave him a plaque saying "Robotics is like Physics. It has its uses, but that's not why we do it."

:D

[Pat McCarthy]

I heard this one from my dad..
"Measure once, cut twice, and it's still too short...";)

[dez250]

this said after two 1/16 inch drill bits were broken by the same person drilling the same hole 2 mins after one another....

"Use the lube, its there for any job..."

Now you had to be there to get the full laugh of it, beacuse we had 1 member walking in as they said that, that person stopped turned around and walked right out, not coming back for 10 mins...
~Mike

[Digo]

"To understand few is better than to understand wrongly."





Digo
By the way, it has been a long time!

[kmcclary]

"Failure is not an option. It comes bundled with the software."

"The only programmers that ever see the dawn are those that have been up all night debugging code..."

"Programmers are always the last ones in the pipeline to touch any new system. Therefore even if their first chance to lay their hands on real hardware came 24 hours before shipment, THEY will be the ones blamed for any system failures, never the mechanical nor electrical crews for holding onto it for so long."

"C code. C code run. Run, darn it, RUN!"

"Keep upgrading your processor's speed to the highest available, so you can reboot Windows faster..."

- Keith

[computhief263]

some of my own favorite sayings

"if it doesnt work, beat it w/ a hammer. Still doesnt work, get a bigger hammer"

" a sledge hammer shall be know as the percision adjustment tool"

"when in doubt, steel toe"

"If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization. - Weinberg's Second Law"

" OI's are not plug and play"

And posibbly my favorite quote of all ( which just happens to be completely unrelated)

"i think it all started when i was one, when i fell outta the shoping cart in the grocery store and had to spend the night in the hospital w/ a concussion"- Jesse James:cool:

[aakash30]

please send me some slogan for instrumentation and control engineering.
u can mail me at : aakash30@hotmail.com
thanx a lot everyone...hope u guys will help me out. :cool:

[Hershey]

OK...I'm the programmer for my team, and the REST of the team's favorite slogan is...

It's a programming problem. :rolleyes:

My pay back for them...(which I'm usually right)...is by saying...

It's a wiring problem.

We were working on a switch yesterday, and I said this and it turned out to be true! :D

[DivideByZero]

It's not "good", it's "good enough" - Our team's slogan when we screw up but it still works.

"If we win, it's cause we have a good robot. If we lose, it's the driver's fault." (I was the driver when we came up with that).

[Mike33]

My kingdom for a/an/some (Place desired item here)

It'll never work!

If it breaks, make it bigger. If it breaks again....MOVE!

[Conor Ryan]

"is it done yet?"

[ElfMaster]

Our team's motto:

Its only temporary... unless it works

[M. Hicken]

I cant take credit for these, but my favorite section is you might be an engineer if:



clicky (http://www.wanderingtrail.com/Humor/engineers.htm)

clicky2 (http://www.engineeringedu.com/jokes.html)

You mught be addicted to FIRST if you know your schools midnight janitor, tell him you'll lock up in a little while, and often are the last soul in the building

[shotgunking777]

in my class in school its "if it doesn't fit get the bloww torch" (heat makes things wider for those of you who dind't know)

[Mohsin]

the unoffical list of things said around our robotics rooms

-- You want me to get INCENTIVE? --
-- If it aint light, put it on the sandwich diet --
-- some peices of metal went to church, this sunday --
-- if it aint related to eucher, it aint canadian --

yeah i know they are really lame, but u had to be there, and the incentive comment, yeah those of u who watched the canadian regional might understand it.

note: nylon rope cannot be joined using solder, though i can be joined by holding a match underneath it, but sadly it will not return to its original strength.


Mohsin
Team 772
Club Sandwich
You want fries with that?

[jeremy562]

Safety is no accident!

[Kelly322]

From a sign in my office and in those of engineers I know:

"Lack of planning on your part does not consitute an emergency on my part" (a personal favorite)

"Never question the judgment of an engineer" (a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor)

"Of course I don't look busy. I did it right the first time."

and my engineer husband's reply anytime I say something is broken: "did you hit it with a hammer yet?"

Maybe not "engineering" related, but all things appreciated by engineers.

Kelly :)

[VideoMan053]

I've seen this on a shirt in a magazine, I think it's pretty good.

I can fix anything ... Where's the ductape? :o