TechnoKats 2003 Animation
 

To check out the 2003 TechnoKats Robotics Team animation click on one of the links below

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Also, please use this thread to make comments on our animation. Whether it be compliments or Constructive criticisim.

Incredible detail!

only two things

1. It was kinda confusing, I caught it but I had to watch it twice to make sure.

2. No music?

Either way it was awesome.

True, music could have made it a LOT better... It's still really good though. I admire the detail work on the parts.

It would have been awesome to see some heat waves behind the jet, which can be easily accomplished with a particle emitter used as a map. Also, the plane looks like it was modeled quickly. Instead of using planes as the door, simply adding some depth and maybe some hinges and pneumatic door control (or whatever they use) would make the modeling aspect almost perfectt. Some more dirt on the plane and the parts shown would have been nice, such as the built up grease seen on moving parts... I'm just being a perfectionist though. We're still staying after school 3 days a week to perfect ours for show purposes.

I was on the animation team for Baxter Bomb Squad last year. I'm amazed to hear you guys talk about this like it's so easy. It was really hard for me, and I have great respect for anyone who tackles this challenge and even more respect for those who accomplish it so well like the tecchnokats have.

Oh, by no means am I underminding the feats overcome by the TechnoKats. I'm on the animation team as well, this year is my second... Our animation wasn't as good as theirs was, and for that I give them my highest respects. I'm simply stating things that could be improved upon in case they decide to perfect it for show purposes as we have done. It's not that easy, and that's why I'm here if they need help.

You think animating is hard? You should try roboting! No offense to any of you animators, but building a robot is really hard and it gets brushed off quite often.

First the technokats animation was done quite well. I thought that it would have been a little bit better if you showed a couple more robot parts...but ohhh well. Good luck at the regionals.

Rofl!!!!!!!!
You crack me up. Maybe what you need to understand is that a lot of teams (including mine) do not have engineers or professionals to help us. Two years ago I taught myself 3ds max with a Pentium II 400 mgz computer. From there I was able to raise my own team of what was 14 people (before others were needed for the robot) lets see assembly teams do that!
Trust me, I know how to do manufacturing, and I know 3d modeling programs. i have machined parts for our robot before, and I have seen programs and I know that it is not easy, we all put tons of work in. However you guys that build robots get most of the credit as we can see with the awards. But look at how many hours animators put in compared to people working on the robot! I was at the build every day working basically every hour that I was there, I took it home and worked on it at 4 am and I busted my tail off.

Maybe you should try to animate before you go shooting off about how building a robot is so much harder. Oh, and if you can't tell, I took a lot of offense to that comment.

Hate to burst your bubble but our team is comprised of 13 students ranging in ages from 11-14. As we are a rookie team none of them had ever done any work with robots or animations before.

We have no engineers, and only 2 College Freshman with a total of six years of robot experience.

So I know exactly how much work it takes to put together an animation and a Robot without professional help.

So maybe next time you shouldn't "go shooting off" until you know the whole story.

I'm sorry, I'm done now.

then what was the point of your post???????????? wait there wasn't one! especially to be put in an animators forum can i see your animation also????

Wow... Just wow, that was probaly one of the best animations that I have seen all year, the plane looks exaclty like it should, I like how you took parts from the robot, changed them slightly and gave them much cooler names, Excellent job, See ya at Nats

Thanx man. What's really cool about the part names is that if you look them up, they're totally authentic. They are the actual part names/numbers!

Also, just to settle the little, "which is harder, animation or building a robot?" What needs to be understood is that they are both very difficult and there is A TON of work that goes into both. I believe that they are pretty much equally difficult, just in different ways. btw, i am on both our animation and mechanical teams and do about an equal percentage of work on both, (many many hrs.) so I'm not commenting on anything that i do not have some experience with.

Lastly, remember what this thread is about: 45's 2003 animation, not any other animation, robot, or views on which is harder etc. Please start a new thread if you'd like to discuss any of those other things.

:) Thank you :)

I must say that after seeing the technokats animation again...I was doubly impressed....nice job guys ...really.

amen. Whoever this gila human player is...shut it. Animation is the most disreguarded aspect of FIRST. While you make a robot...and you get credit on the field for it...what do animators get. Shafted in basically every way. We get no reckonition...and no respect...and usually ZERO funding. I'm fine with that, I've chossen to accpet that but honestly, why don't you try animation for a year. I will put down 100 dollars right now that you would reconsider your previous staement. I know that every animator on this forum will agree with me. It's not that roboteering is hard...it's that posts like yours have proven why there is no respect for the animation aspect of first.

P.S. If you think I'm over reacting then try animation for a year. I will put 100 bucks down that you'll change your mind. So if you want to disagree.....

nice animation , pure genius! i like the realism and how you kept it really simple unlike us we tried cramming so much in to 30 sec it didn't really come out the way our "mental picture" had it. anywayz it's our first year we got a lot to learn i'm just a 9th. also i like the rumble effect of the missle. But i think u should have showed more of the actual robot we didn't even see it.

as 4 the which is harder: i think their both pretty hard but 4 me animation was a lot harder cuz their werent any one really working hard on it full time. of course if you take it in 2 perspective their both pretty hard and require the same skills:

• skill with the tools ur using
• hard work
• mountain dew or other keep awake beverage

FIRST: Teaching students today to build the weapons of tomorrow.

I like the satire.

i like your animation also but;

- i was a student animation judge and i though (and others agreed) that it didn't have as much content as other animations.

-content meaning : first is ......

others had each of the main first themes and displayed in a creative way how these themes were used or how we benefited

but... you had a very high creativity score to go with a high technical score

BEN

Hey
 

i was trying to play your animation but it wont play, i got sound but no movie. i tried it on 4 dif. viewers and on 3 dif. computers an xp aa 2000 and a 98 it just wont have video whats wrong?

Re: Hey
 

I have the same problem and it happened for team 108 as well at home and at the site but I can their animation at work. :(

I have the same problem of downloading at schoo, this is because my school blocks downloads (to be able to play my windows media player needs to download a codec).

Im having the same problem...ive heard the animation is awesome and i want to see it...but all my media viewers wont let me look at it. somebody help!! i want to see it....

For Eric (GilaHumanPlayer), I will add another 500 dollars to that bet. I don't want to start a war cause Eric is my friend but I don't think he realizes how hard animation is just because the most I ever saw him do was animate a couple simple shapes in Max 2.5 over 3 years ago.

w00t 2.5!!!!!!! The good ol' days

great animation btw, I think it is more what first is looking for, ones that show how first is applied in the real world and promote first.

Re: Hey
 

Goto www.divx.com and download the divx player, then you should be able to view it.

I took a lot of offense to the previous comment made by GilaHumanPlayer..... Animation is just... rigorous... 5+ hours everyday after school, entire weekends sitting at a computer... it gets tiring... but you work towards the finished product. Work on something before your criticize it, otherwise you just make yourself look like a fool.

As a past Technokats animator, I would like to say awesome work, and you better keep it up.