FIRST: INFO PAMPLET
 

O.k. the magazine Idea has not gone down the tube, but has been shelved for the time being...

A much less time consuming idea is to create a how-to-guide, similar to a collection of white papers. FIRST is willing to support this, although I am unsure about the content and the major needs for new teams.

Any help on what to put in this guide would be greatly appreciated, because it is designed to quickly bring new teams up to the status-quo that the veteran teams expect from their teammates and competitors.

Re: FIRST: INFO PAMPLET
 

There are hundreds of Whitepapers available here on ChiefDelphi - while some of them are out of date, many are valuable resources to rookies and veterans alike.

It is our experience that almost all authors on this site allow and encourage their works to be reproduced, provided they of course are properly credited for their writings.

Team 341's Team-In-A-Box project includes a collection of whitepapers on its supplementary content CD-ROM - however, this section always has room for additions and revisions.

As a matter of fact, a little help in enhancing the whitepapers section would help it out a lot :D

(Shameless plug/request for aid: http://www.team341.com/tiab.html)

But seriously, regardless of how you choose to undertake this project, it sounds great. And the need is definately out there - you wouldn't believe the response our team has seen from our intra-FIRST outreach in the past.

Re: FIRST: INFO PAMPLET
 

Don't take this as a criticism, because it is not intended that way. You seem to be a writer in search of a topic, and you are seeking a method for helping rookie teams advance quickly into the FIRST competition and culture. My suggestion would be to start right here on Chief Delphi.

1) As Abwehr has indicated, there are many white papers on CD that could be reviewed and updated, grab one, post it and ask for comments/suggestions and then edit it incorporating the feedback you receive.

2) There are a list of links along the left side of the portal. These links have many support items for rookie and veteran teams alike. Look at the Cybersonics "FIRST Interactive Rural Support", a collection of teams willing to help mentor other FRC teams. "openFIRST" is a community of FIRST web developers willing to assist teams developing their websites. Most people jump into these forums and never check out the interesting links that already exist. Review these links and make a catalog of the offerings they have for FIRST teams, then post it as a white paper. These links are an excellent guide to what other people think is important for teams to learn/know as they progress in FIRST.

Once you've reviewed the materials that already exist to help teams, you will have an idea on which perspectives haven't been addressed. What you are suggesting isn't a novel idea, it has been done already by many teams; Cybersonics (103), Miss Daisy (341), Rolling Thunder (1511), MOE (365) to name a few. [NOTE: I will be glad to add any team to this list who has also created materials helping rookies integrate quickly into FIRST. Please send your team name/number along. I know there are many other teams that should be credited as well, but I am most familiar with these efforts.]

Find that new perspective that will reach a market that currently isn't being addressed. Then your effort will be additive to the community, as you want it to be, and not just something that is repetitive.

Re: FIRST: INFO PAMPLET
 

As a rookie team in 2005, RollingThunder hosted the first-ever "All Rookie Meet & Greet" at the championship in Atlanta. We met outside on the field between the Georgia Dome and the pits and hosted a meet & greet with many of the rookie teams.

Team 1511 Rolling Thunder will again be hosting the
ALL ROOKIE MEET & GREET
at the 2006 Championship in Atlanta (likely to be Thursday at lunchtime)

At that event, Team 1511 will give each rookie team a thorough database of all the other rookie teams, some hints & tips, to do's in Atlanta, etc. We compiled a major "book" of helpful stuff for rookie teams especially with a focus on the "off-season", and starting-up FLL teams, Vex, etc.

So, if you want a copy of all the items we did for 2005, just send me a message. Otherwise, stay tuned for a great 2006.