fried

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Posted by Kyle Huang.

Student on team #192, Gunn Robotics Team, from Gunn High School and Sun Microsystems, Nasa/Ames and Xerox PARC.

Posted on 4/11/2000 10:08 PM MST

this was my second and last year with my team. this year, although i wanted to
work on the robot badly, i had to commit myself to animation, because i was
the leader of the team, and i wasn’t about to walk out on the rest of the members.
the team worked badly, because there was a high slack-factor among
many of the members. excuses and, well, BS plagued me every day, and
some members were VERY counterproductive as well. anyways, i got the
minimun amount of sleep possible, my grades plummeted WAY down, and i
was about to explode. about four people did the entire animation, out of a team
of eleven people. we had to enlist the help of a veteran that was going to college
nearby, one member from 115 Monta Vista Robotics for a day, and Daniel
Lehrbaum came back for a few days to help us during the last four days. it
was a struggle the whole way, and after nationals i’m completely fried.
(PS, thanks to ken pflum, daniel lee, and daniel lehrbaum. we wouldn’t have
finished without you guys!)

i’m sick of animation, i’m sick of FIRST, and i hate 3D studio max with passion.
while working on the animation, shadows would randomly turn on and off…
i could not fix the shadows in one cut, and it was the day of the deadline so
i had to start rendering. in the middle of that cut, the shadows rendered for 1/5
of a second (6 frames) - there is a big noticeable flicker in the middle of it.
AND, all the robot textures in that cut were ray tracing as well, which only
slowed the whole thing down - we have no idea why the textures were
ray tracing. we never told them to, they just did. we had so many problems
with 3D studio max, i never want to touch the software again. no offense
to anyone at autodesk… i’m going to try to switch GRTv over to a different
animating software for next year.

FIRST is a great organization, but maybe i just need time off of this project
for a while. we didn’t rank very high at nationals, because we were one of a
handful of defense-only robots. we all feel like we were overlooked big time
during alliance selection (obviously), but our advertising was very very bad.
and the knowledge that we were right on the border of being picked by at
least two top-16 teams (one of which went on to win) only makes it harder.

The way we were paired with robots during qualifying really makes me sick
as well. the good got better, and the not-good stayed the same, or climbed
or fell a bit at a time. we had non-scoring alliance partners in all but one
of or qualifying rounds. how were we supposed to rise in rank???

the animation entries: well, i don’t want to start another debate and ■■■■
more people off like last year… i thought our animation had a fighting chance,
and was definately better than at least one of the winners (not including
rising star, of course).

i simply feel like i gave my soul to this competition, and i have nothing to
show for it now. in the animation we submitted, one of the cuts is out of
order, the music doesn’t line up as it was intended, and i spelled ‘sherriff’
incorrectly (it was late, i was tired). that also doesn’t include the flickering
shadows i described above. people that see our animation cannot stop
saying how great it is, but i can never stop thinking about the errors the
mistakes we made.

i will be posting a version of our animation on the web, as soon as
adobe premiere stops crashing. this version, if you don’t mind, will be
corrected. spelling errors will be corrected, the music will line up as it
was originally intended, and the cuts will all be in the correct order.
we’re also thinking about releasing a full color version because the
detail is much more present and visible. for those of you who didn’t see
it, our animation was a silent movie. we sepia-toned it, added scratches
and dust and film grain… there was perfect music written by a student
at Gunn… i’m also going to release an MP3 of the music.

anyways

the animation competiton is such a subjective thing. there isn’t a way to
set rules for creativity. it’s all based on opinions and biases. there is
absolutely no way to know what the judges will like, and to build an
animation around that. this is another thing that has me frustrated.

i may be facing not going to the single college i was accepted to because
of my grades right now. anyways, i’ve had enough. it was fun, but it’s over.
and although i’ll still support my team in any way, i doubt i’d ever go back
as a participant. when i’m out of college and have made millions and
millions, we’ll see about sponsoring teams (especially GRT). florida was
fun, but for now, i’m fried - extra crispy.

wow, this is quite a long message. thank you for reading all the way
through it.

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Posted by Daniel.

Coach on team #483, BORG, from Berkeley High School and NASA Ames & UC Berkeley.

Posted on 4/12/2000 4:53 AM MST

In Reply to: fried posted by Kyle Huang on 4/11/2000 10:08 PM MST:

Kyle,

I could sit here and write about how FIRST is not about winning or losing, how FIRST is about what you get out of it, how FIRST is about what you’ve accomplished – but I think we all pretty much know that’s not the case. Not really. FIRST, as Dean Kamen ‘the man with the vision’ wishes it to be presented, is more like a robotic sports tournament than anything else. It promotes engineering in a form most high school students are able to relate to: competition. FIRST is about winning and losing as much as hockey is about takin’ off those gloves. They don’t go out there and make a big public announcement out of it, but deep inside we all know how it is.

So…that’s what makes it the toughest thing when you put your heart and sole into something that doesn’t get recognized. That you can go home from Florida thinking ‘wow, I don’t think anybody really knows I exist’ – this is an inherent problem in the system, and FIRST has tried to fix it with things like the rookie award, things like the controls award. These are specific awards that allow teams to go home with a sense of accomplishment. The fact of the matter is, you could go through those pits, pit by pit, and pick out something special and ‘awardable’ about EVERY SINGLE ROBOT. Team 483 would have easily taken home the “most artistic speed holes” award. And this goes for the animations as well. The problem with that, is that with our mentalities, the awards would be meaningless and hollow if every single team was getting one. Thus we are the cause for our own misery. It’s a shame.

And it’s not the only shame either. It’s a shame that autodesk had to pick a winner this year. There were so many worthy animations that I’m sure they sat around their little table worrying about their collective conscience when they made that choice. They knew that although they were making one team happier than they’ve ever been in their quiet little lives, they were sending home a handful of GREAT animators, each with a handful of nothing. No award, no recognition, nothing. Its too bad you had to be in that handful Kyle, cuz I know you wanted nothing more than to win that award. It’s completely understandable, to tell you the truth I wanted to win that award too and I hadn’t even submitted an entry =)

Similarly for the robot, the fact of the matter is, you went to Florida to play ball and that’s what you need to do. So much is left to chance that rolling with the hits and just having fun is really what makes a winner in this competition. It hurts the most when you fall just short of what may appear in your mind as certain victory, and that’s what makes it so hard to remember how close you were and how big of an accomplishment that is. You guys almost got picked from a pool of the near 300 robots to play as one of the elite few who make it into the finals. That’s no simple feat and I’d have to say there are easily over a hundred teams that are insanely jealous of that. That which you seem to consider as “not enough”. My team is no exception. We would have given anything to play as reliably and solidly as GRT could always be counted on to do. Getting almost picked is no easy task. So, GOOD JOB GRT! You built an awesome machine in a hole in the wall shop in a neglected corner of campus, and it rivaled the best. It’s more than I can say.

So…

Hold your head up, bring those grades up, and get off to college. You’re not the only one who could use some time off, and you’re frustrations are likely shared by a good percentage of empty-handed homecomers. To all of you who fall into that category: I challenge you to take a good look at your robot, your animation, the videos and pictures, and most of all take a look at your teammates. Forget the empty spot on your trophy shelf and think about that spot inside that all those things were able to fill for the time you’ve been involved with FIRST. Give them a good hard look and tell me there aren’t any good memories buried underneath all your frustrations. Tell me that, and I’ll tell you I don’t believe a word of it. FIRST has it’s problems but it’s a great thing. Hold on to that animation Kyle, ‘cuz it’s something you’re gonna be proud of for a long time. And if you’re not…remind me to give you a good beating next time I see ya. Alright?

I do sympathize…really.
-Daniel

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Posted by Aya.

Student on team #115, MVRT, from Monta Vista High School and NASA Ames Research Center and 3Com.

Posted on 4/13/2000 7:19 AM MST

In Reply to: fried posted by Kyle Huang on 4/11/2000 10:08 PM MST:

Hey you!

This might as well have been a personal email to you, but what the heck, i’ll just post it so the whole world (if they choose to ever read my postings) can know what i think of ya

Now, i kno how much time you’ve DEVOTED to your team and cause (trust me on this, you dunno how frustrated i was getting about it too, haha) your expectations, hopes, and your dissappointments ever since last summer when i started talking to you, ever since you had that pile of responsibility placed upon your shoulders as one of the student leaders. Now, that WAS a heap of trouble, and i don’t blame you when things got frustrating because they don’t get taken care of just as you imagined that it should be. The world was never made to exist as an Utopia, else i would be in lalaland (and I’d be enjoying it too!!).

And knowing you as the cynic that you are (yes, you are, admit it) you do realize that this competition isn’t only about winning as Lehrbaum says. Ofcourse, its inevitable that the main stress factor is placed there, with all these awards and peer pressure tantalizing each and every participant, especially those who strive to be distinguished through quality put into your work. It’s just like how the Chairman’s Award is dimmed in significance through the excitement of achieving the ‘top robot’ awards. But you do know very well, more than i do for one thing, that this is all about recognizing personal achievement and how an exchange of a multitude of ‘personal’ experiences such as what you can see here at the forum betters the competition every year. Else no one would be influenced to participate, no would would bring back the joy and pride of being a part; else it would be more like enforced military participation, exactly the opposite of what the FIRST ideals stress for mental flexibility.

Just on a side note, its a really indigenious idea to have awards because it really helps out with fundraising, it sounds great when they know that you’ve won something and can be proud of it. However, awards are very misrepresented. I know one of my members was telling me that he met an engineer that totally blasted our robot even if we won the Leadership in Control award at Regionals, but sat him down to give him a full lecture on so much technical info that we could’ve used instead on our robot. And all for a very very small price of gracious professionalism. Isn’t this what its all about? Trust me, people SEE your work/effort. You’re not invisible.

But I’d just like to let those reading this that Kyle (although he sounds quite harsh in the email) is someone incredibly admirable, just misrepresented for all i kno, but i have never known anyone more devoted to FIRST than him and that we should all be proud to kno someone like him is a part of FIRST. He sacrificed MANY days of sleep for animation, not to mention his sanity. At the pits during nationals, he was the only one that was diligently updating his team webpage even if his team members left to cheer for a match, or ran off to the parks. Now I can say that this takes much perseverance and devotion, oh my god, and you should never think of yourself not worth your efforts for one thing (else i’m marching over there right now to slap some sense into you).

So never EVER say that you don’t have nothing to show for your efforts, cuz at the least part, my team is converted haha… But really tho, you have fans of your work (starting with me), and i’m really proud to say that you’ll be giving the beloved FIRST website a major design makeover. Your efforts ARE recognized, don’t you see? maybe you guys as a team didn’t do all that well with animation, or the robot was overlooked at the selection process. I’m poed that our robot wasnt given a fair chance because our alliances weren’t all that. But that’s all part of the competition. Each year, we’ll encounter a different problem, whether it be on teh robot, financial, or pr-wise… and we’ll have solutions to figure out for the following year. Its a growing competition. Nothing’s going to stay the same, and you can never face it with the same attitude because you’ll hafta adapt, change, and predict what you’ll be seeing in teh future.

However, i think i trailed off the original message that i wanted to say. Although you might’ve experienced much frustration and self-sacrifice, i think your efforts were well worth the trouble. I for one thing know the time you put into it, and look at how far you’ve came so far. No one can do so much as you can; its amazing how your hands can perform miracles as i say it So don’t be bitter about it; its a matter of opinion, like you said it. Well, bust out your charm and think of ways that would sway the public to your side? Last but not least, congrats to you… You’ve gone far this yr.

~am~
Fellow student leader & supporter (lol!)
Team 115 MVRT

(wow, talk about me rambling again… heh, its LONG)

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Posted by Travis Covington.

Student on team #115, MV ROBOTICS, from Monta Vista High School and Hitachi Data Systems - 3com - NASA Ames.

Posted on 4/13/2000 4:15 PM MST

In Reply to: fried posted by Kyle Huang on 4/11/2000 10:08 PM MST:

Hey kyle

I know that youve worked your butt of during this competition and have nothing to show for it, but as aya said it isnt about that. Its about the learning expirience you get in return. This competion was created to introduce students to science and technology and to for them to have FUN doing it. Its also about meeting other students doing the same thing as you. It has nothing to do with rewards or prizes or even recognition…your team gives you that(I hope)

Also you do have something to show. Arent you going to be helping FIRST out with the webpage. That must tell you something. Your extremely talented and will eventually get your recognition. I know because for months our webmaster was TOTALLY jealous of your webpage. You remember that dont you. It is great! Im sure everyone whos seen it says the same thing.

As for the animation…you had some bad luck. So did we. At least you guys turned one in…and It was GREAT. So maybe there were a couple eroors or things that went wrong, but im sure that 90% of the people didnt even notice. You shouldnt be so frustrated about the competition, its only a game right:-)

Finally, i really hope your not sick of FIRST becasue they really need you. Your a big leader in computer graphics and animation and will make a faboulous webpage for FIRST. So keep going dont let it bring you down. You would also be a great leader for a new First team. HINT HINT

So just remember its about having fun, not winning.

Travis-Team 115 Monta Vista

P.S. To all those who havent seen GRT’s page
YOU SHOULD
WWW.gunnrobotics.org

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Posted by Scott.

Other on team #192, Gunn Robotics Team, from Gunn Senior High School.

Posted on 4/14/2000 12:19 AM MST

In Reply to: fried posted by Kyle Huang on 4/11/2000 10:08 PM MST:

heh kyle:
u know what… u spoke for my heart. i totally agree with you at the animation part. i was just about as frustrated as u were… (that’s why i am so lazy now… heh =P i was burned out during the animation production.) but man, i enjoy the time i spent with u those days. heh… and we can always fix the errors later bah. we still get some time to do that… heh. don’t blame me… i am exhausted… and sick of 3D Studio Max. hum… thinking of re-render some stuff… u know i just wanna make it perfect… not for other people… but for us. we don’t have to show it to other people ah… =)

ScOtT