Teams 1529 and 3176 have collaborated to introduce … a new method of collaboration for the Robotics community.
#BotChat is a biweekly hour-long conversation on Twitter. Over the course of the 7 o’clock hour EST, @Robot_Chat will post five robotics-related questions, with the hashtag #BotChat. Participants are encouraged to give their 140-character responses with the same hashtag. In this way, individuals and teams can make new friends, discuss topical issues, learn alternate viewpoints, and share ideas with people across the Twittersphere.
While the questions will certainly be FRC-centric, they will not be exclusive to the FIRST Robotics Competition. Enthusiasts of FTC, FLL, jFLL, SeaPerch, VEX, NURC, - all robotics competitions are invited to participate.
The pilot chat will be this Sunday, 12/16, from 7-8p EST.
The plan is for #BotChat to occur on the 2nd and 4th Sundays of the month; they may be weekly during FRC build and possibly competition seasons.
If you have ideas for questions, please send them to Carolyn Grace (@CarGraB) or me (@taylor1529) and we’ll add them to the rotisserie.
Come join the fun, follow @Robot_Chat, tell your friends & teammates to do likewise, follow other people’s responses.
This is a great way to utilize social media and open up networking within the FIRST community!
Besides the networking aspect of this, it would be an interesting team project if you were able to capture some of the data, analyze it, and see if there is any interesting information that could be put into a white paper.
When Carolyn and Mike tweeted me about this, I thought it was a fantastic way to bring together aspects of the robotics community. You can bet I’ll be participating (@JVNoon). This is the logical progression of #omgrobots.
@Robot_Chat already has 42 followers!
We’re really excited for our debut of #BotChat.
I suggest that you follow @Robot_Chat directly. This will let you see the questions in your own feed, so they do not get lost in the #BotChat feed among all the chatter.
We have a great list of questions to choose from, but we can always use more and better suggestions! Robots are not the only thing that need iterative design.
So, if you have an idea for a question, don’t hesitate to send me or Mike Taylor a private message.
The conversations will be documented and archived at www.botchat.wordpress.com.
Still wondering what’s going on?
What is #BotChat?
BotChat is a collaboration between FRC teams 1529 and 3176 to get the greater robotics community communicating with each other about critical and topical team-related subjects.
What is a Twitter chat?
A Twitter chat is a real time conversation using the Twitter social media platform. People can participate by following a particular #hashtag during the scheduled meeting time.
How do I participate in the #BotChat Twitter Chat?
You must have a Twitter account to take part in a Twitter chat. To create an account, visit www.Twitter.com. To follow along with the scheduled chat, log into your Twitter account and search for and follow @Robot_Chat. This handle (which is Twitter lingo for “username”) is the host of #BotChat. All questions will be posted from @Robot_Chat and we will also post updates about future #BotChats. To see any tweets that relate to #BotChat, just search for #BotChat. All posts that include the hashtag #BotChat will show up on your computer screen. At first glance a Twitter chat may seem mildly chaotic; however, you will pick up quickly on the structure:
1.The first 5 minutes or so will be for introductory comments by @Robot_Chat and introduction of the participants so we know who is “out there.”
2.Whenever you respond to a question or post during this Bot Chat session, be sure to use the #BotChat hashtag in your post.
3.The remainder of the chat will consist of questions designated as Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4 and Q5.1.Participants will respond to each question using parallel designations A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, while also including #BotChat in their responses.
4.As the end of the hour approaches, the leader will call the discussion to a close, though participants are welcome to continue interacting with each other.
Hints to make your #BotChat Twitter chat more productive:
1.Always respond using the A1, A2 … prefix so that everyone else knows what question you are responding to.
2.Always use the #BotChat hashtag at the end of your response or people won’t see it unless they actually “follow” you on Twitter.
3.Twitter chats start exactly on time and end on time. If you are late or miss the chat, you can search after the fact to see what you missed!
4.Twitter is a PUBLIC forum. #BotChat is meant to be a fun way of sharing best-practices, opinions and short discussions about all things FIRST and Robots. Make your responses helpful and friendly. Also, don’t share your private information (phone number, address, etc.) over Twitter. You never know who may be looking.
Feel free to continue discussions via DM (Direct Message). Twitter Chats are a great way to network and meet other people interested in the same subject as you. You never know who you’ll become friends with on Twitter, but just remember to be safe.
Remember, the pilot chat will be tomorrow (Sunday 12/16) from 7-8 EST. Join the conversation!
With school years beginning across the land, we thought this would be a great time to remind you of the biweekly Twitter chat #BotChat. It’s a great tool to gain insight from teams and individuals across the world.
If you’ve never participated before, simply follow @Robot_Chat on twitter and/or search the hashtag #BotChat. There will be a series of five robotics-related questions between 8-9p.
This week, the focus is on the start of the school year, and getting/retaining new members.
See you on #BotChat!