[Richard Wallace]

Originally Posted by Billfred

So what? Going by team number alone is a lousy way to go about it--....

How is it lousy? Doesn't that judgement depend on what criteria you choose to emphasize in assigning qualification match partners and opponents? Why should the criteria for making qualifying matches be anything at all like those used by scouts to select elimination partners? What goal of FIRST would be served by that?

IMO the object of qualifying matches is to expose every team's strengths and weaknesses so that scouts get the clearest possible picture of the pool of talent from which elimination partners can be drafted. (Clearly this object was poorly served by the "pertpetual opponent" algorithm because that scheme failed to put teams on the field with the largest number of different alliance partners and against the largest number of different opponents.) Given that during 1-1/2 days of qualifying it is not possible to ally every robot with every other robot, nor oppose every robot with every other robot, would any good end be served by making qualifying alliances of low numbered teams?

Students of statistics will appreciate that "randomness" in assigning qualifying match alliance partners and opponents is not a realistic goal. There is simply not enough time available. The best we can do is agree on a set of realistic criteria for qualifying match assignments and devise an algorithm that comes as close as possible to satisfying those criteria. Tom Saxton has taken a crack at this; I think his effort is worth detailed study by FIRST engineering staff and such study may move this discussion in the right direction.