QotW [11-03-03]: The Real Impact

FIRST Rumor Mill
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Maddie’s probably a little busy, so John and I decided to step in this week. This week’s question is a direct one straight from our conversations.

Many people look at ChiefDelphi.com and use it as a resource. Some use it only for the entertainment value, and for countless others it is a way to branch across FIRST and come in contact with some of the country’s most up and coming technological minds.

**Question of the Week 11-03-03: ** Does your team mainly use Chief Delphi as a resource, or just as a checkup on the rest of the FIRST community? How many members are involved with ChiefDelphi.com? Would you encourage rookie teams to join or just observe? What other features would you like to see?

I’m looking forward to intelligent replies. Maybe we’ll get a better idea of the viewing audience, and how this site can be the best it can possibly be. Please keep your comments tactful and considerate to the webmaster and the rest of the Chief Delphi team. This is not a thread meant to attack the site, merely for feedback.

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I encourage my team to use it as a resource, during build season… if somebody has a question nobody can answer, i usually reply: go see if anybody posted about it on cheif delphi?

I did encourage my team to be more involved (at least browse) in this site, but i discouraged posting unless you had something intelligent to say (turns out my kids are just too shy, so that one worked out… at least until i drill the shyness out of them)

for the few true firstaholics on nutrons… we surf for information and for entertainment, what can I say? We just can’t get enough of it.

I also like this site because its a way of meeting new ppl in FIRST, getting an idea of new personalities… and in a sense, network. An invaluable skill that I learned at the ripe old age of 16 yrs old. :smiley:

3

I use it for all those reasons, however my new team is somewhat cut off from this community! I’m not sure why, but most of them don’t know about Chief Delphi forums, so I’m going to get them hooked by referring to it as much as possible (already started at today’s meeting) and then directing them here for questions during build. Right now there are only two other members listed for 246 and they only posted once each after joining during the build season.

More features? That’s always good, but I can’t think of anything drastic to add on. Vb3 will be nice when that gets going. I think that the site is pretty well known and gets advertisement enough from FIRST, so I don’t understand why my team hadn’t been using it and I have no clue how to draw more teams in.

I’ll keep spreading the word on the east coast.

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*Originally posted by Amanda Morrison *
I’m looking forward to intelligent replies. Maybe we’ll get a better idea of the viewing audience, and how this site can be the best it can possibly be.
Nice question; there is always room for improvement and change.

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Well, I am the only person from my team who posts here. One other person from my team reads here occasionally. Everyone on my team thinks I am nuts for being so devoted to the CD boards.

Let me just put it this way. I have a state of the art computer with a $40 per month broadband connection. I only visit three internet sites eBay, FIRST, and Chief Delphi. I use my computer for three things, homework, auctions, and Chief Delphi.

At 9:40 something every night (PST), I am here, waiting for the server to come back from it’s nap. I am here now, posting this. Even when I am not here, I am still here. Always alert, always on call, always ready to serve, and be served.

Why? I don’t know. Perhaps I am a geekish loser who has nothing better to do. Or perhaps to help myself, to help others, and to help myself help others. The world may never know.

But I see a Chief Delphi membership as this:

It’s the one you really need to have. And if you don’t have it, that’s why you need it.
And I hope someday I can have a personalized membership card, to be more than some pixels on a screen.

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Chief Delphi Forum is the place that connect everyone in FIRST together beside the competitions. It is a community, it is a voice, and it is a constant flow of ideas. It give the opportunity for many FIRST participants to meet others who otherwise they wouldn’t have known. It open the eyes of many who thought the only thing there is to FIRST is the competition and competition only.

Many mentors come in and chat with each other about the deeper issues of FIRST, while the students come in to ask questions and share their experience. Some of them do both, some do neither.

Like FIRST, there is many meaning for this place call “Chief Delphi Forum”. Maybe it’s nothing more than lots and lots of conversations happening, and maybe that’s good enough of a meaning. I have, however, over the years observed a few constant values that always exist around here. Learning… Sharing… Teaching… It is as if only the very best spirits of FIRST participants show up in here. True, there are up’s and downs here and there whenever people feel emotional, but in the end, it is the people who care that hangs around the CD forum, demonstrating the core values FIRST wants its participants to learn.

Now, to answer the questions, very little of the West Coast FIRST mentors post on the CD forum. There are the very dedicated people such as Jason Morrella, Eric Reed, Eric Stokley, the Gold brothers, the Beachbot engineers, the Beach City Robotics folks, but what works better for us are the WRRF and SCRRF meetings. A lot of the topics that get discussed in here are talked face to face at those meetings. Chief Delphi is a great place for the overall FIRST community, but as far as regional communities goes, I am afraid it’s a little too big for that.

The White paper section is great for resources. The team list and members profile is great for looking up contact information. The forum itself is great for questions and answers, and chatting about some issues with people you wouldn’t meet usually.

But other than that, I have to say I enjoy the WRRF meetings in the sense of really being a part of a community. From time to time, I feel like this forum is growing toward a online bulletine board instead of a place to build close friendships. And I don’t mean any disrespect for this forum or anyone who participant in here. It’s just that I make really good friends at competitions (especially off season ones), at WRRF meetings, and on AIM. However, I have to admit this forum is a great place to let others know more of you before meeting in person at events.

And I think it’s ok for everyone to use this forum for different reasons. It isn’t necessary to set a specific purpose for this website, if its goal is to provide everyone in the FIRST community a way to connect with other participants. As for building smaller communities, I think that’s left for the individuals who want to form those communities to do it.

I encourage everyone to come in and observe the community, but at the same time, I also want to urge everyone to think for a little bit before they post a message at the spur of the moment.

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There are a few on my team who are REGISTERED @ chiefdelphi, thought mostly Tton and myself post. Our advisor uses it as a resource for information as do I.

Specifically, I like chiefdelphi because it brings the FIRST community closer. In fact, some of my closest friends I met from the CD forums.

I would DEFINITELY encourage rookie teams to at least look at cd. I started just as a guest and decided that it was a community I wanted to be part of. If veterans discuss with rookies why it is important and what the benefits are, rookies are MORE likely to learn from what chiefdelphi has to offer.

In case you weren’t sure, I am so addicted to CD that more than 50% of my posts are chit-chat.

And, I did a crazy dance around my hall today when I got my custom title (even though anthony [aignam] did get his before me)

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During the season, I predominantly use CD as a resource. I don’t usually need to ask too many questions, but when I do, CD can be an absolute lifesaver. There’s always someone out there who can answer your question, and it’s a great resource to have when you’re confused and crunched for time. The rest of the time, though, I hang around to stay connected with the rest of the FIRST community. I can check up on all the crazy random people I’ve met, that way :wink:

As far as members from my team go, we have a few registered, but Jack and I are really the only active ones. The other couple just look in occasionally, or if we send them to see something particular.

For rookies, I would DEFINITELY encourage them to join and become active participants of the CD community. There’s so much aggragate experience here that rookies can draw on, and the best way to access it is to become involved. You can get some of it from just observing, but it’s not going to be as helpful as if you’re actively participating, and asking questions.

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sorry to be off-topic but…

*Originally posted by Jeff Waegelin *
For rookies, I would DEFINITELY encourage them to join and become active participants of the CD community.

way to steal my use of the word DEFINITELY :stuck_out_tongue:

ok, back to your regularly scheduled on-topic thread posting

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*Originally posted by BandChick *
**sorry to be off-topic but…

way to steal my use of the word DEFINITELY :stuck_out_tongue:

ok, back to your regularly scheduled on-topic thread posting **

Oops… I didn’t even read your post… sorry.

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[quote]*Originally posted by Ken L *
** It is a community, it is a voice, and it is a constant flow of ideas. It give the opportunity for many FIRST participants to meet others who otherwise they wouldn’t have known. It open the eyes of many who thought the only thing there is to FIRST is the competition and competition only."

This time of year I spend much of my FIRST time attempting to contact rookie teams (especially those who will be attending regionals we will be attending) to offer any assistance we can give. One of my first suggestions is to join the Chief. I can’t think of a better place to get answers than the “CDF.”

Ken Loyd
Team #64
Teacher/advisor**[/quote]

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Other than college students, I don’t think my team really uses CD that much, though I should really push it more. I think CD is a great place to share ideas and get to know people. Michael first got me to register for CD, allllll those years ago (wow, makes me feel old). Chief Delphi has always been a great resource and I don’t know where we’d be without it. It has brought us together as a community and every year it continues to grow. I would encourage anyone to be a part of Chief Delphi, rookies, alumni, everyone. I think it’s a great asset to us all.

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CD is the best source of technical information (motor values, electrical stuff, some good programming stuff) for FIRST related parts. There are some world class experts who are willing to post on this board.

CD has become the point of origin for many of the new ideas propagating through the FIRST organization. Last year’s game ideas thread, this year’s eligibility meta-criteria thread have shown that membership on CD allows the community to influence the direction of FIRST or to anticipate the direction of FIRST.

CD probably has more people on it than FIRST’s email lists. So, CD is a better source of disseminating info to the FIRST community than FIRST.

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I give the link to my team for them to use as a resource mainly, since CD is such a wealth of info (whether it be in the white papers, or from the people). I (and others on my team) also use it to meet new people, and to keep track of what else is going. It also is a great plac to have interesting robotics or science/tech related discussions.

Primarily I use CD as a resource, so much to learn here.

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*Originally posted by Amanda Morrison *
****Question of the Week 11-03-03: ** Does your team mainly use Chief Delphi as a resource, or just as a checkup on the rest of the FIRST community? How many members are involved with ChiefDelphi.com? Would you encourage rookie teams to join or just observe? What other features would you like to see?
**

I use it as a resource, to keep an eye out on FIRST stuff, to keep in touch with teams we don’t see with skin on except at regionals, to upload white papers or pics for the benefit of others, for entertainment.

A handful of our students are involved with Chief Delphi - more so during build season.

Finally my husband signed up.

I encourage everyone to get involved.

I’ve taken to including an interesting thread in our team emails to encourage team members/mentors to check out Chief Delphi.