Quote:
Originally Posted by rswsmay
Just as changes were made with the FRC and FLL programs with the programming language and upgrades/improvements or wholesale changes to the control system, We should also expect that similar technology changes with be made to this program from time to time.
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True, but was a complete overhaul of a system made after only 2 years of using the system (Vex was released only 2 years and 3 months ago)? From all that I've heard, this Vex season was considered a "success"; I don't understand the desire switch to something completely new when you can take something that works pretty well and refine it, especially when the capabilities have not reached saturation, especially with the introduction of the new advanced gear kit.
It's my hope that if a new system is introduced for FTC, they would at least allow the use of the Vex system as one alternative in the competition. While teams that have more technical training, talent, and financial resources might consider a major system overhaul every 2 years a fun challenge, we are slow learners with limited resources. We've invested so much time and money in this system (collectively, our team spent over $400 in Vex parts over the past month alone), that if Vex were disallowed, I doubt that we would have the money or energy to move to a new platform next year, which would mean the end of FIRST for us. We know individuals and schools that have purchased Vex kits that are wavering on the edge of deciding whether to take the plunge of entering teams in high school robotics, and disallowing the Vex kits would push them away. Vex resources for rookies that have gradually been developed over the past 2 will become obsolete, with similar resource development for a new system 2 years behind. In short, the teams that have less money and technical support are the least resilient when it comes to major change and will suffer the most. It was my understanding that FTC/FVC was deliberately designed to serve teams with fewer resources, and disallowing the Vex kits seems to go against that goal.
Last year, the release of Mindstorms NXT meant the introduction of a new system for FLL (after 6 seasons of exclusively using the RCX), but FIRST guaranteed that the old RCX system would be allowed and that the game would be designed to make the RCX reasonably competitive for at least one, possibly more years.
Allowing Vex as one of several possible platforms would at least lessen the effects of a major system switch.
Yolande