Triple Play/Unofficial hints

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Unofficial hints for the untitled 2005 game.

Theories

• The title above (FIRST Frenzy: Undefined) is based on personal conjecture that 2004's game was the first in a series, as evidenced by the use of a colon. This theory is also mentioned in this CD Thread --Phrontist 09:17, 29 Jul 2004 (EDT)

• In this CD thread, Dave Lavery specifically calls out one-hit wonder Gerardo from a list of fifty "awesomely bad songs." A snippet from Gerardo's sole hit, "Rico Suave," reads: "So please don't judge a book by its cover/There's more to being a latin lover/You got to know how to deal with a woman/That won't let go." This would lead one to believe that a deceivingly difficult object will be on the field next year, possibly something with very high traction. Pure speculation, but Dave Lavery has admitted to sometime putting very subtle clues in his posts (as seen here on CD). --Billfred 13:11, 6 Aug 2004 (EDT)

Very interesting Billfred... Perhaps this has something to do with the PG13 Duraplay kickball Ken Wittlief mentioned. Would Ken be in a position to know? --Phrontist 20:29, 9 Aug 2004 (EDT)

No, Ken has nothing to do with FIRST staff. He's just an better then average engineer on a team in Rochester, NY. --Sciencewhiz 10:48, 27 Aug 2004 (EDT)

• After carefully considering the hints, this is my big theory of the moment. I think what we're looking at is the ability to leave automode at will, if at all, and some sort of reward for remaining in auto. But more importantly, I don't think the reward will be in points, but in strategic advantage. I'm imagining data about the state of the game (some "secret" info) being sent to the robots via radio. The auto programs could use this secret data that the drivers wouldn't be privy to. This adds a whole new layer of strategy, with the drivers trying to guess the info based on the actions of the other robots. This also eliminates the serious buzzkill of a failed automode, because teams can always bail out. Never a dull moment! --Phrontist 23:05, 25 Aug 2004 (EDT)

Interesting, although I'm not sure how such information would be handled with the current IFI gear. You'd either have to modify the OI or the RC to accept the data from an outside source. I'd guess that things would be worth more in autonomous, but things haven't been officially scored in real-time since Ramp 'n Roll in 1994. It'd just take a lot of complicated stuff to do something like that. --Billfred 15:24, 27 Aug 2004 (EDT)

Hints and Leaks

• In what was possibly the first hint for the 2005 season Dave Lavery said "Do you have to use IR sensors? No. But we supply all the software and the servos and we make it as easy as possible, so why wouldn't you. But do you need to use them? No. That doesn't say anything about next year, however." during the 2004 Kickoff. Seen in this CD Thread
• "I was at the science center yesterday and I saw something that reminded me of next year game." - Dave Lavery, during a speech at the VCU regional. See related CD Thread (Note: paraphrased)
• "I encourage everyone to think about using the summer/fall to improve the sensing capabilities of their robots. Some of us have a vision of the future that includes full utilization of all three elements of the "sensing-mobility-manipulation" pyramid. Those who can see their way to learning about these technologies will probably find it a worthwhile pursuit." - Dave Lavery (CD Thread)
• "Do my eyes deceive me? or are they playing with a PG13 Duraplay kickball from PoloSports?! SO! thats why we are using them for the comp this year?" - Ken Wittlief in this CD Post. The thread was about a video of a Segway Polo match. This may or may not be a reference to 2005.
• lowering the maximum weight
  • "Imagine the utter chaos that would ensue if every team really had to start from the same baseline of knowledge - or lack thereof! Imagine NOT being able to count on certain things to stay the same from year to year. It would do more to "level the playing field" between veteran and rookie teams than almost anything else FIRST could do." - Dave Lavery (CD Thread)
  • "So, rather than increasing the weight restriction, we need to decrease it by 10 pounds or so (or just increase the mass of the battery or other non-negotiable parts by 10 pounds while keeping the restriction where it is, which would have the same effect). And then have FIRST throw a copy of the Atkins diet book in with each kit..." - Dave Lavery (Re: Weight) :ahh:!
• In this CD post, Dave Lavery says "Life is short. Eat dessert first." as part of a manually-added signature (one that would require him to type it himself, just for that post). Dessert, known for often being the least beneficial (or, alternatively, most harmful) part of a meal to humans, may be symbolic for some immensely challenging start to a match, such as (for a 2004 example) starting the match while hanging from the bar. On the other hand, such lighter elements of dessert such as whipped cream may hint that autonomous mode will be very easy this year. Darn Dave and his non-hint hints. --Billfred 23:02, 21 Sep 2004 (EDT)

Ah! Dessert could mean the driving period, the easier and (for some people) most exciting one. So maybe we'll see auto mode moved to the END of the match, which would be uber cool. --Phrontist 11:57, 24 Sep 2004 (EDT)

And making a auton for hanging off the bar (sort of thing?) ? Maybe it means the game is going to be shorter, and there will be many ways for scoring points. Hence, the game is shorts, and eat dessert (the most enjoyable part of the meal) first, meaning go for the high scoring options first. Denman 16.14 6th December 2004 (GMT)

• In this CD post, dlavery gives the most obvious hint to date!

I am now certain a toroidal shape is involved, see Toroid_Terror! --208.226.132.3 13:18, 7 Dec 2004 (EST)

• Dave said:

This is a very cool idea. So cool, in fact, that I suggest you hold off doing anything to implement it until at least January 8. There is such an obvious need for this type of shared code library that I am hoping FIRST will have already thought of it and will surprise us with a sanctioned, supported system to do this very thing. If they do (/me keeps fingers crosed really well!), then we are good to go. If not, then the community should see about getting something set up and running as fast as we can (I would advocate for a SourceForge site, as it is already set up to do what we want).

--[[User:Astronouth7303|Astronouth7303 (1227)]] 18:46, 16 Dec 2004 (EST)