Re: pic: OH GOD! WHAT HAVE I DONE???
 

I would start by reading every single stickied thread. They're usually up there for a reason. Next, clean spelling and grammar helps a lot. After that, don't be afraid to ask questions (assuming you already searched)!.

Re: pic: OH GOD! WHAT HAVE I DONE???
 

why wouldnt u want to try to build this? it does not look too complex at all. it looks more like a few simple parts that are organized to form a complex arm. im new to this site so sorry if im asking too many questions but i am confident that if i had all the materials needed the task of making that arm would be easily done in a week. does your team have all the tools needed to make those parts or is that y u say it is too complex?

Re: pic: OH GOD! WHAT HAVE I DONE???
 

thanks erich u sound just like RC haha. im still getting used to using the site. i have not really explored far out of the list of recent activity and i didnt even know that there was a chit chat part on here. ill check that out though thanks.

Re: pic: OH GOD! WHAT HAVE I DONE???
 

thanks for the advice. sorry if this is a stupid question but what is a stickied thread? is that what this is? and ya RC said that my texting talk has got to go when im on here or i would not be taken seriously. btw do u guys only know him as RC? i keep writing his real name and then i have to go back and write RC instead because i dont know if anyone will know who i am talking about or not. and i apologize for clogging up this topic room can someone tell me how to reply to someone without putting it up here for everyone to read? im not anything close to a computer wiz.

Re: pic: OH GOD! WHAT HAVE I DONE???
 

wow believe it or not he is just a regular student at my highschool. i was not aware that he had such an influence. and thank you i appreciate it. i hope that i am not hurting his reputation with my presence on CD.

Re: pic: OH GOD! WHAT HAVE I DONE???
 

Here's some advice:
Stickied thread: If you go into a forum here, near the top there will be a thread or several that say "Sticky: [thread name here]". Those are the Sticky thread.
Real names: Look at someone's profile (what you see with their username when they post) to find out if they have/use nicknames or real names. I don't remember RC putting one, but I haven't looked recently.
Replying privately: click a person's username. A list will show up that says something to the effect of "View public profile" "Send Private Message" and some other things. Select the Private Message (PM) and type what you need to.
One other thing: Editing posts. There's an "Edit" button on each of your posts for a short time. Saves you the trouble of posting again to correct a post. Can also be used to delete a post.

Re: pic: OH GOD! WHAT HAVE I DONE???
 

Many of the crucial parts of this design rely an a lot of mill work, something my team has very little access to, and the tid-bit that we do is very limited capacity. Piece by piece, yes this arm is relatively simple, but when put together, you need some very important parts (such as a nice big gearbox) to make the rest of it work correctly. As with any design, the more complex it is, the more specific its function, but the higher likelihood that your not going to get it to work. There are teams with access to lots of tools, and build impressive machines, with lots of complex systems that work together perfectly. Then there are the teams with less resources, yet create amazingly functional robots from the resources at hand, sticking with simple "why didn't I think of that??" solutions to problems. Each can create wonderful robots, and be very successful in the games. My team has to try and be the latter, but I dream of the former.

Thanks for all your help guys, I'm currently switching to SolidWorks 2009 SDK so I will return from finals next week in full swing. This should be completed and attached to a robot before kickoff.