I heard a good rumor recently… and it seems to be one that will come true.
The rumor is that Microsoft will be providing their XP software package in all of the team’s kits this year… and maybe even MS Project.
I wonder how many people on each team will be able to use these software copies, or if we can only load them on one computer.
Hmmmm.
Andy B.
Thanx Rumor Man…
Windows XP would be sweet to see in the kit…but i dont know how we would use it…(plus i’ll have it before we get our kits so it wouldnt be that big of a deal)…
As for 
MS Project:confused: what exactly is that?
Microsoft Project is a software package which has project management-related stuff, like Gantt charts, Pert charts, etc.
This is the software which project managers use to chart how a job is going versus the time involved.
It mostly uses a Gantt chart, which uses those horizontal bar graph graphics with milestones. You would know it if you saw one.
The reality of us getting this software package seems less likely. I’m fairly sure that XP is on it’s way, but not so sure about MS Project.
Andy B.
I heard the same rumor, although my version doesn’t say anything about project.
I like your version better 
If this is true, is it also possible that FIRST is holding a bunch of spots at the PAC NW regional for teams funded by the Microsofties? There has to be some reason that there are only 20 spots.
P.J.
*Originally posted by Andy Baker *
**I wonder how many people on each team will be able to use these software copies, or if we can only load them on one computer.Hmmmm.
**
Hopefully, the packages they release to FIRST for the kits will be in the volume licensing program, where the product Activation is not required…
*Originally posted by P.J. Baker *
**If this is true, is it also possible that FIRST is holding a bunch of spots at the PAC NW regional for teams funded by the Microsofties? There has to be some reason that there are only 20 spots.P.J. **
I have a feeling that why the NW regional is so small right now is that based on what FIRST has on their web page, they don’t have a definite location for the event. Without knowing for sure how many teams the site will be able to handle, they don’t want to say that X teams can go to the event, only to find out that X-10 can go. Also, based on what I remember from last year, there was only one MS team…
The only team currently sponsored by Microsoft is 488, and, as things stand, they’re not even registered for Pacific Northwest.
They’re registered for NYC, I believe.
And, finally. . .
I don’t quite get why FIRST would include an OS in the kit? What purpose would it serve?
I heard somewhere, that it was Office that they included into the kits. I heard that FIRST wanted teams to front their own paper work and put in the .doc and .xls formats. I can see this as a incentive to do the yearbook, and many other stuff that FIRST wants teams to do.
It is always good for teams to get the latest and greatest software.
Hope they can squeeze in Office V. X for Mac OS X.
The educational full price is $200 for the full version of Office, so I can see that. Personally I think that it is better to include Office than an XP. The only reason I can think that if they would give us an OS, is if there were specific FIRST software for this year’s objective?
*Originally posted by Andy Baker *
**I heard a good rumor recently… and it seems to be one that will come true.The rumor is that Microsoft will be providing their XP software package in all of the team’s kits this year… and maybe even MS Project.
I wonder how many people on each team will be able to use these software copies, or if we can only load them on one computer.
Andy B. **
If Microsoft is providing teams with Microsoft Project, I highly, highly recommend you sell it on eBay and use the profits for robot parts, or throw it out. The company I work for has tried to use this software package over the past summer. They attempted to train all the employees on how to use it, and it simply is far, far too complex for it to be of any use. After one of my co-workers literally spent all summer implementing the use of Project in the company, it remains unused because the amount of productivity it saves you is rediculously low compared to the effort you have to put in to use it. I think a chalkboard is a more ingenuous product than MS Project.
As far as XP, I hear it’s a nice operating system although resource-intensive… but I don’t know what FIRST teams would use it for. The way licences work with XP as I understand is that Microsoft maintains a database of which physical computer (it actually stores several different characteristics of your computer – mac address, CPU speed, hard drive size, etc…) is allowed to use a specific XP licence key. Therefore, unless Microsoft is giving out multi-computer licence keys, then you’d only be able to put it on a single machine.
Patrick
*Originally posted by patrickrd *
**
As far as XP, I hear it’s a nice operating system although resource-intensive… but I don’t know what FIRST teams would use it for. The way licences work with XP as I understand is that Microsoft maintains a database of which physical computer (it actually stores several different characteristics of your computer – mac address, CPU speed, hard drive size, etc…) is allowed to use a specific XP licence key. Therefore, unless Microsoft is giving out multi-computer licence keys, then you’d only be able to put it on a single machine.
**
As someone who’s been using XP for the last couple of months, as well as having seen the information that gets passed along to OEMs, I will say that it is slightly more demanding on the hardware than anything in the Win9x line, but being based off the NT code base, that’s not real surprising. (For those of you that didn’t know, until XP, MS had two different OS lines - the 9x line for home users(95,98,ME), and the NT/2000 line for business users.) But what I will say comes along with this is probably the most stable and functional OS I have seen Microsoft put out yet, and this is coming from someone who’s had his hands in every one since Win 3.1. There has not yet been a device I’ve found that XP has not had drivers for out of the box. Even such oddball devices such as my Compaq/Rockwell 56K HCF winmodem didn’t need outside drivers for XP.
As far as licensing goes, the way Patrick described it is partially correct. Yes, certain parts of the system it is installed on are “photographed” to keep it from being installed on multiple machines. However, not all of this information is sent to Microsoft. For each item that is looked at, only a small fraction of the data is actually sent to Microsoft, so there is no way that the information given to them could be used to determine what you have in your computer. To use the example from their own technical document,
From MS Tech Bulletin on WinXP Product Activation
Example: A processor serial number is 96 bits in length. When hashed, the resultant one-way hash is 128 bits in length. Microsoft uses only six bits from that resultant hash in activation’s hardware hash. Due to the nature of the hashing algorithim, those six bits cannot be backwards calculated to determine anything at all about the original processor serial number.
Also, for what Microsoft calls their “Open,” “Enterprise,” and “Select” licensing schemes, a different install CD and product key are used which bypass the Activation scheme entirely.
Finally, to keep those power users who are constantly upgrading their systems happy, Microsoft’s database resets your record every three months, so you can reactivate 4 times a year without any problems.
MS Project is a very powerful project management tool. It is not always as easy to use but you can almost always do what you want with it.
You will have to decide for youselves whether the power is worth the bother.
Joe J.
One concern: would you be able to sell the Project program? Somehow I get the feeling that would either violate the license agreement or violate something in Microsoft’s contract with FIRST and its teams. A lawsuit with Microsoft for simply selling a program would definitely not be a good thing, if they were to ever find out.
If Office XP were to be included in the kit, it would certainly make a few things easier for the people compiling the FIRST competition magazine, website, and other stuff that the use the registration eMail for. This would make the reading of registrations from MAC users easier. BUT WAIT! THE AMAZING DAN HAS A BETTER IDEA: STANDARDIZE WINDOWS!!! Now, I know there ARE those of you that will protest that that’s monopolizing, but hey, we need a friggin standard. Personally, I’d like to get a copy of Office XP for free, but that’s me. I’m still using my free copy of AutoDesk, and that’s a helluva nice program. FIRST is an excellent bunch of dudes, and Dean’s the coolest kid on the block too. Party on Garth!
I have to agree with Dr Joe’s response on project, it is a somewhat complex program with tons of features that you may never use but it is very helpful to get into the mode of following a timeline and knowing if you are behind. Only when you know you are behind can you make a plan to get back on track. MS Project is an integral part to all of our vehicle launches and it would be a good program for FIRST to use since you probably will see it in the real world someday.