09-09-2003 22:41

ZACH P.

Ha! Just as I suspected. And they called me crazy....

09-09-2003 22:47

Mike Schroeder

i think everyone would be safer in calling john crazy

10-09-2003 00:04

Chris

Hmmmm....Snow Cones



;-)

10-09-2003 11:07

Amanda Morrison

John...

nice try. no dice.

10-09-2003 11:40

JVN

Who said anything about dice?

Although... that would make a pretty interesting game.
Think of the possibilities!

10-09-2003 12:19

Madison

There would be so much variety!

There'd be pit boss robots and dealer robots and roller robots. Then, there'd be support robots -- cocktail waitress robots and plain clothes security robots and and golddigger robots that hang around whichever roller robot is winning.

Don't forget the entertainer robots, though! Or the vagrant, barely moving robots. Or the callgirl robots that are all show and no go. And there'd probably even be a few Area 51 robots that can supposedly do things no other robots can do.

Wow. The possibilities really are limitless.

10-09-2003 13:03

Jeff Waegelin

If we end up with a game involving either traffic cones or dice, I'm seriously going to go crazy...

10-09-2003 14:46

IMDWalrus

Maybe I'm just being an ignorant FIRST newbie, but I really don't get this one...

10-09-2003 15:16

EIROBOTICS86

This is my fourth year and i still dont get it

10-09-2003 16:04

Alaina

I don't get it either...

10-09-2003 18:11

Ian W.

Come on guys, it's so obvious.

This year the robots will have to um, err, uh....

*Awkward Silence*

Look, it's Andy Baker!

*runs*

10-09-2003 18:30

Andy Baker

OK, I'm gonna have to pull over and come back there if you guys keep this up.

Actually, I kinda liked Krass' idea of waitress and golddigger robots... we would put plenty of perfume on them and glitter on the outside.

AB

10-09-2003 18:32

golf_cart_john

Traffic cones make a lot of sense! They're like the bins they had last year: odd-shaped, hard to grab, and awkward. The picture doesn't say anything about the structure of the game, but it looks like next year's game will use cones instead of boxes or balls.

10-09-2003 19:08

Steve W

My question is : Where does the tarp, toner cartridge and caution tape come in??? This makes some interesting combinations.

10-09-2003 21:40

Katie Reynolds

Hahaha. You sure you want to ref next year's game?

- Katie

10-09-2003 21:45

Jeff Waegelin

Not if it's anything like the casino game mentioned earlier...

10-09-2003 22:17

JVN

Is silicon on the allowable parts list?

10-09-2003 22:28

Ian W.

Well, retro-reflective tape is again, look at his sneakers!

I wonder if we'll actually have to trace lines or something this year...

10-09-2003 22:51

Aidan F. Browne

John,

Never mind the cones -- how did the toner cartridges not jump out at you?

Move the copier into the right cubicle - 10 pts
Change the toner cartridge - 5 pts
Your robot is on top of the copier at the end of the match - 25 pts

Its all very clear to me!

The cones are just left over from when they had the water leak.



Aidan

10-09-2003 23:51

JVN

Clearly... this has too many points associated with it.
FIRST should immediately change this rule!
It's just going to be one big fight for the copier.

Will "King-Of-The-Copier" type robots dominate? Only time will tell.

11-09-2003 00:58

Amanda Morrison

Somehow, I'm thinking 'Office Space' gone horribly wrong.

but.. I just... wanted my stapler...

11-09-2003 10:18

Tytus Gerrish

This will be fun! especially if they extend the autonomous time

11-09-2003 10:23

Joe Matt

If they do cones, make them the floppy kinds, not the hard plastic type. That would make it hareder.

11-09-2003 13:13

Travis Hoffman

Silicon breast implants? That must be what Lara Croft and other computer-generated females get instead of silicone :-P. I suppose it would be natural for robotic hookers to also have implants made out of a semiconductor.

Unlike humans, I bet silicone is safer for robots than saline. What would happen if a robotic golddigger got into a catfight with a robo-showgirl? Imagine the impalements and resultant salt water splashing everywhere. The horror! Hmm, for the safety of all innocent robotic females participating in the 2004 competition, I think we need FIRST to make a ruling banning all saline products next season.

Just say no to saline!

This all sounds like source material for the plot of a really bad Futurama episode.

11-09-2003 15:51

JVN

Glad someone caught my play on words. Heh.

I agree, I kept thinking I keep thinking of Futurama.
How about a Futurama-FIRST episode?

11-09-2003 18:22

IMDWalrus

The series is cancelled. It would have been interesting, but it's not going to happen.

11-09-2003 19:27

Aignam

Is cyanide?

12-09-2003 12:08

KenWittlief

I got the official word on this.

the 2004 game will have 4 bots on the field, two alliances again.

In auton mode two opposing bots will try to pick up toner cartridges and rags from the play field floor, then ram into each other at full speed head on, using the toner cartridges as bumpers! (keep in mind, Xerox is a founding sponsor :c)

after the auton mode the remaining two bots will be deployed to put up traffic cones and police tape around the 'accident' site

and will have to clean up the spilled toner and rags from the carpet area. In the last seconds the bots will try to tow the collided robots back to their home 'garage' (enclosed box)

details on scoring yet to be worked out.