Quote:
Originally Posted by martin417
I have done no "in depth analysis", no trade studies. I haven't spent hours thinking about the issues, the ethics, and the morals. I won't make a passionate statement about how it should be done, because I don't know.
What I have noticed since the start of RI3D and others, is that instead of a dizzying array of different ideas at each regional, some awesome, some not so much, some that work others that fail, we now have a lot more "vanilla pudding". Most of the robots end up being a clone or a derivative of one of the robots built in the videos. Yes, more of the robots work better than in the past, but there are fewer "wow, that is cool! I never would have thought of that!" moments.
I don't think RI3D is evil, but I do think it has reduced the level of creativity, and given teams an easy way out that too many are taking. It's like using a cheat code in video game, yeah you get past the boss, but it's not as satisfying, and the game is not as exciting. (this is an analogy only, I am not saying that RI3D is "cheating")
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This is perhaps the most level headed argument yet, and perhaps the opinion that I currently sit at.
The bad teams are going to do bad, and the good teams are going to well, but it seems that the diversity and creativity you used to see in the middle "class" just isn't there anymore.
With that being said, the value of Ri3D is undeniable. Being able to get 24 hours worth of design/testing/development from some pretty impressive people is just too good to pass up. Ri3D has helped to raise the middle-lower tiers and helped to give the middle-upper tiers a solid foundation, and that's not benefit that I'm willing to just throw away.
The challenge for me is how do I balance Ri3D's help with the creativity and design opportunities for my team and me.
This is why my team has implemented a relatively simple set of checks to allow our folks to do our fair share of prototyping and designing and integrate the Ri3D teams' findings, results, and builds to enhance our process.
- Sunny G.