question for all mentors
 

do you mentors keep this page up during work on your computer? I just wonder how we get so much help when all of you must have jobs and/or other obligations?

Re: question for all mentors
 

A very slow time of the year for me. Most of my work time is spent away from the computer fixing things that break. And when they don't break...

Re: question for all mentors
 

For the most part yes. I try to check it atleat once every half an hour or so. I typically don't do a whole lot of posting, but a lot of reading. I am finally getting the hang of things and will be able to help with more technical questions this year!

Re: question for all mentors
 

The forum software (vBulletin) has an email notification feature for new posts

Re: question for all mentors
 

I just look at it during lunch, along with the news.

Re: question for all mentors
 

My Supervisor is pretty relaxed about internet use at work as long as I still get everything done so I check CD pretty frequently when I'm at my desk.

Technically, visiting message boards and forums is against company policy, but since my employer is a sponsor for our team it's not really a problem.

Re: question for all mentors
 

Good question. :) I bet there will be lots of different answers.

I have worked 2 different jobs since I've begun posting in CD. In the first job, I would check CD before work, during a 15 minute break, lunch, and after work.

In the 2nd job, I would check CD before and after work.

Right now, I'm between jobs and during this awesome time of year, I've been celebrating being a part of CD during all times of the day and night. It's been fun but I think I need a job. A little CD goes a loooong way. :)

Jane

Re: question for all mentors
 

Work? what's that?

Re: question for all mentors
 

I use the email notification but do not leave email active. I check in periodically throughout the day and night. Most days I start at 6 AM and checkin then. Those that are night owls, cover while I sleep.

Re: question for all mentors
 

When I wake up, before I go to sleep, and maybe once during the day if I'm working.

Re: question for all mentors
 

During FRC Season I check and stay on CD more then any other website.

Re: question for all mentors
 

I do probably 90% of my job on a PC, so I often have a CD tab open in my browser (at least during/near build and competition season).

Re: question for all mentors
 

It's excellent Time Management and Multi-Tasking skills that allow it.

Re: question for all mentors
 

I browse during work, especially when a computer model is crunching away and I can't do much else.

Re: question for all mentors
 

One of the curses of working from home. :P But I'm generally good with balancing between the two before January. After that, it's all downhill from there. :D

Re: question for all mentors
 

When stuff is working the way it's supposed to there's nothing much else to do.

Re: question for all mentors
 

NEMO has a private forum on cd (and we cannot thank cd enough for this service!)
I have the pleasure of "letting" mentors through the door (and keeping all the spambots out. Who the heck is "Dark Helmet" anyway and why are then spending so much time trying to sign up for NEMO :confused: ?)So I am on cd at least once a week to do that task.

I don't keep this page open, but probably do check in at least once a day, scanning the portal for topics of interest.

Re: question for all mentors
 

I check CD while I'm waiting for ProE to reload everytime it crashes.

So that's about 20 times a day :ahh:

Re: question for all mentors
 

Sorry, I was working.... what was the question? :rolleyes:

Re: question for all mentors
 

Gotta love working at a computer... And yes, as we begin to move into the season, one window for CD will be kept open here and at my apartment... You never know when you might see something good on here.

Re: question for all mentors
 

As a Kettering student who does co-op it looks somewhat bad to be browsing the internet instead of doing my job. I generally restrict my CD usage to lunch and boring meetings.

Re: question for all mentors
 

I don't keep CD open all day, but I do check in more or less every day, scan "new posts" and some threads I've subscribed to. Drop answers where I can be helpful, keep quiet where I can't. 15-20 minutes per day average.

Re: question for all mentors
 

Work is what you must do.
Fun is what you like to do.
Most ideal circumstance is when work = fun.

Re: question for all mentors
 

No one told me FRC mentors were allowed to have jobs or other obligations.

Re: question for all mentors
 

No. My day job is too demanding.

I try to check approximately daily.

But there are a lot of mentors...

Re: question for all mentors
 

I am a college student so I leave CD on only during the easy classes or the realy boring classes where ill fall asleep... - I know that is not good :rolleyes: .

I also work at the high school I graduated from as the robotics advisor to help our teacher sponsor. When I am at the HS I leave CD, USfirst and VEX forums up all the time.:D

Re: question for all mentors
 

Doing software development professionally gives you plenty of free time during the day...


The sad thing is, the comic isn't too far from the truth. Make a small code change, compile, build, deploy, and restart the server... 15 CD-filled minutes later I can finally see if it does what I want!

Re: question for all mentors
 

I leave CD open on a tab and periodically check in while Teamcenter/NX are loading or I'm stuck on a conference call that I don't really have to do anything for.

Re: question for all mentors
 

It's the whole reason I have a second monitor on my laptop at work.:ahh:

Re: question for all mentors
 

Hmmmmm... your picture looks like your first monitor is for designing FIRST robot parts. I guess you need a third monitor for work.

Re: question for all mentors
 

I have it up most of the day (during build season) when teaching at school. 1/5 of my teaching salary is to be a robotics mentor/coach.

When I go home, it a different story. Family duties take priority, usually :)

Re: question for all mentors
 

This is my home page on my phones browser and one of 4 FIRST tabs (Bill's Blog, USFIRST, Q&A) that are set on my laptop at home and multiple machine profiles I have at work. Yea I check it.

Re: question for all mentors
 

That is just some random COTS part I pulled up to hide the stuff I'm actually working on, which I can't show because of some pesky documents I signed when I was hired.

Re: question for all mentors
 

The evil bunch of FIRST haters that own the servers I work behind block CD. You're gonna have to step up to the plate one of these days, NASA.

Re: question for all mentors
 

If I have a few minutes here or there at work, I'll check chiefdelphi. If it's an easy answer, I'll answer it when I read it. If it's harder, I'll leave it until after work and usually someone else will have answered ;). I also check for a few minutes in the morning and the evening.

I looked at the 50 people with the highest reputation. Most post less then once a day, and very few post more then twice a day. See the attached histogram. It may seem like some people are always posting, but looks can be deceiving.

Re: question for all mentors
 

I check daily during the build season...
Brian C

good luck to all teams in 2011...
Especially Programmers....