The lost lexicon

Other Chit-Chat
1

I have only been around since the 2011 season, so I missed out on the prior generation(s) of FRC terms, phrases, shorthand, and slang.

I sense we are loosing some of the terms I came through the program on too.

Honestly “letting the magic smoke out” has died down substantially since 2020 when brushless came into full effect (sorry Nidec).

What are some other terms that have died or are dying on our watch? Some of these are just the progression of things and reframing. Like “elims” vs playoffs.

Other things have been rules nerfed into oblivion, I.e.
Cheesecake.

Still others are fragments of past technology, “digital sidecar”

Please share, memory road can be fun sometimes.

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2

Bag and Tag.
Stop Build Day.
Jags
Off board compressors
EDU bots
Classmates
Victor Fans

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3

Good riddance to both of these!

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4

Kickoff events (not gone, but different)

Kickoff field

5

Dozer (correct me if I’m wrong, but I haven’t seen him in years)

Hybrid Mode (I’m thinking the game that used Kinect, not sure if Sandstorm counted as hybrid but maybe it did)

Nationals

Speaking of which… “Two champs”…

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6

We may have seen the last of round robin in official play too, that was an artifact of 6 divisions at champs.

Now, round robin is a common enough term and it was used in the common way in FRC…

7

Fix-It Window

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8

Small Parts (RIP)

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9

“Module” in reference to the parts you put into your C-Rio.

10

BOM - bill of materials (albeit common in other industries)
CAW - cost accounting worksheet

Chairman’s award - there are more than a few other awards that have changed / been removed. Website, animation…

Dean’s homework - I don’t think that’s been a thing for a while

11

This has a lot of them: The FIRST Devil’s Dictionary

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12

Ship day.

Or as my daughter once said, “We used to shut our robots up in a box and send them away from home. Now they just suffocate them.”

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13

I could be remembering a previous year, but I believe Dean did give out his homework this year at champs.

14

Was ball drive ever enough to warrant it?

15

There’s always the noodle agreement, but that kinda depends on the game.

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16

If H111 becomes permanent, Noodle Agreement is gone forever.

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17

I kind of miss them. Means that there was a time where I could relax between build and competitions

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18

There still is/never was, depending on how you parse things.

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19

Here are some that were alive when I was a student, or at least early in my mentoring career:

  • 127 (the value for “stop” on the 8-bit IFI Robot Controller)
  • Chiaphua
  • Fisher Price (motors)
  • Fish & Chips
  • Crab drive
  • (S)TIMS
  • OI, RC
  • “PWMs” (referring to motor controllers)
  • “Standard Bumpers” (from a time when bumpers were optional)
  • back-up battery
  • PROG button
  • Gear tooth sensor
  • Upgrade Parts, Spare Parts (as official terms)
  • Withholding Allowance
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20

My favorite entry in this list:

Data analysis (n.): Carefully crafted conclusions drawn from carelessly collected data.~George1902

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