The team number is mainly used for the team list. There has to be a catch-all for those that aren't on a team, and 0000 is good because there probably will never be a #0 FIRST team.

Re: Re: Real names, please
 

i dont know who you are taliking aboput but everyone i know and talk to here have their real team numbers shown and if they arent on a team they use 000 to signify that. many refs and vlounteers that use this board that do have a team number other then 000 present is because thats just what they are, a volunteer for FIRST.

~Mike

i agree with every one else

By any chance, do you use America Online?

HAHAAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAAHAHAHHAHAHA!

Maddie if that was intended the way i read it as a joke, then it was just wrong, if it was a true question and he answers yes i feel bad for him...

~Mike

OMG!@!!!1 dat wuzsoooooo phunnie!!!!!!@!@!@!!1 i lovez you maddie!!!!@!!!!1

Ok. Enough of the retardedness from me...
Getting back to using your real name on CD. I'm all for it. I've been iritated for the past 3 years by all the pseudonyms here. I mean, it's weird replying to threads by saying
"cooldude257:
(insert text of message here)"
I'm glad that a lot of you have taken Andy's and others' words to heart and changed your usernames to at least your first name. Thanks.

-Bill Gold

PS - I was serious above. I thought Maddie's post was funny. And no, I usually don't write with all the mis-typings and extra exclamation points. I just felt like typing like some of the people I chat with on AIM.

Re: Re: Re: Real names, please
 

Look at the team listings.

There are over 320 people in the team #000

That averages out to 14 delphi-poster-volunteers per regional, assuming that no delphi-poster-volunteer volunteers at two or more regionals.

It's intended purpose was good, but it is now being used to create an aura of secrecy around people. It's not like these people are causing trouble, it's just irratating that there are people who post under a pseudonym, with a team #000, asking for info in say, a scouting thread.

It's might be just me, but I like knowing who I am "talking" to, particularly here. We should be a step above a video game forum or a chatroom, here. For the number of people actually on a team #000 that post here: why not either:

A) be an alumni of your old team
B) Be given an option to be put down as a regional volunteer, and there could be separate "teams" for each regional.

IE, instead of Team #303, I could be team number #chesapeake regional volunteer.

Follow me?

To be honest, the team 000 is irritating. There are NOT 326 volunteers that are registered for this forum. Do a simple search of 000 members, and their posts. You'll see 000 members asking about drivers, asking for info, adding their piece in discussions: members that are CLEARLY on a team, but pretend they are not, abusing a feature designed to help people not on a team.

Hell, if I wanted to be mean, I could start posting names right now.

If we are a FIRST community, why do these people want to hide themselves from the rest of us?

I can only speculate about the thought processes on that one.

Ok I think the real thing that everyone post is agreeing with put you name somewhere if not it the SN put it in your signature. Also for the team#000 there are probably the few out there that are on a team now and post under it but there are the ones who are trying to start a team, or actually volunteer.

I'm Mark Arrowsmith and I drink dangerous amounts of Mountain Dew.

(HI MARK!)

Most of them are on teams.

I myself am "from" team 38, but graduated before this past season. I'm no longer a student on the team, and as a result of working full time, I no longer have the same type of time to donate to the team. I consider myself a "member" of the team, in that I do try to help out how/whenever I can, but officially, I consider myself a volunteer for FIRST (field reset at UTC and ref at Nationals).

My situation aside, I'm sure there are countless numbers of CD posters out there that are involved with more than one team, and wouldn't feel it fair to post one specific team for them to be associated with, and therefore use 000 to symbolize their involvement with FIRST, without showing alliegance to any one specific team.

Hi my name is mike

too many mikes on this site so just make up a name and call me by it. :) just make sure i know what it is so that i can respond to it ;) or just call me the following names

MOUSE
MIKEY
MICKEY
JOHN JACOB JINGLE HYMER SCHMIDT - someones gotta use this name why not me !! ;)

I think that for CD users who have an affiliation with more than one team should still put up the number of the team who knows them best or that they are most closely associated with. This way, random FIRSTers who are looking for them at competitions could have a place to start.

ByE

erin

I see two main issues in this thread that people are discussing, I will address them one at a time.

Putting Real Name as your screen name:

I've always used my original name for my screen name, even though I changed it from Ken Leung to Ken L. You know why? Because when people ask who I am, I tell them, "Hi, my name is Ken." Never bothered with "LKen5411" or the hidden screen name I use.

When I go to competition, and ask people who they are, all of them tell me their real name. They might say "oh by the way, I post as '******' on Chief Delphi", but I can never memorize all those names in addition to the real names. To me, knowing people's real name makes the competition feels a little more professional. Just like meeting new sponsors, engineers, and teachers, they always tell me their real name which appears on their business card. So much easier arranging people's business card with their real name.

Plus, all the people I really care about in the competition, I call them with their first name, such as Ken, Jess, Robby, Bill, Mark, Jim, Jeff, Carolyn, etc. Just makes the meeting with people a little easier, and friendlier. I never needed screen name with I am talking with close friends.

If you use a screen name that's hard to remember, or hard to pronounce, chances are a lot of people who only know you through the forum through one or two discussions probably can't remember your name. And then you start talking to people through e-mails, or PM's, or AIM, and different names started appearing and it get 10 times more confusing.

With so many names to remember in this forum... it's just so much easier to remember names like "Andy Baker", or "Joe Johnson", instead of "abubbabaker" or "drmotors".

Well, it is up to you to decide, but when it come to real conversations, I am going to ask you for your real name ;).

The second topic in this thread is about team 000, and here are my thoughts on that.


Traditionally team 000 is use for users who are done with their high school team, and no longer associate themselves with their own team. Another use is for official people like FIRST staff to post in the forum (although they rarely do now).

The current situation is, a lot of people on team 000 choose that number because they no longer wish to keep their talents in just one team, or they are sick and tired of their own team and no longer want to be associated with them anymore. They are still working with a FIRST team, but they are more of a free floater instead of a team person. They will volunteer at regionals, or participate with a team or two, but they want to be known as a person of their own, and not part of a group.

I encourage that kind of mind set. I myself used to work with Team 192 Gunn Robotics Team in high school, and us GRT people are "once a GRT, always a GRT". It's part of my past, and a big reason I am the person I am today, but I don't associate to that team anymore. I worked with multiple teams around the Bay Area because I want to help out more kids than the 50 on GRT, and now I work with WRRF running post season competition and teaching workshops. That's why I choose Team 000. To me, it is important to show that I don't just stick to one team anymore.

You can look at my signature and see what teams I've been with, but I prefer people knowing me for the person I am, not with whatever team I choose to help out in the season.


Frankly, there are too many stories behind each person for one number to show what status that person is in the competition. I know plenty of people who should be associated with a team, but at the same time, volunteer at the competition, and volunteer at off season events. The number 000 just shows they do more than working with a team.

And sure, I want to know the person when I am talking to them. That's why I encourage people putting up their real name as the screen name. But the team number shown on the left here was never quite as important. When I see a team number, I would say "hey, I heard about your team, what do you do in there?". When I see 000 I will say "I see you put 000 as your team number. So, do you work with a team, or do you do more?" And that usually work out just fine.

Being on team 000 Doesn't mean people are hiding themselves from the rest of FIRST, it just means they don't want to be known as part of a team anymore.