Very excited about the new format for the new Q&A. Just have one question - does this mean that individuals may no longer submit questions but they must be channeled through the coach/mentor of the team (or whoever else have the team log on credentials)? I am fine with that, and it may provide a layer of quality control to the submissions. However, if that’s the case, I’ll need to let my team know and poll them every once in a while to see if they have anything that needs to be submitted.
1 Like
That is specifically addressed - only the primary, secondary and financial contacts associated with a team is permitted to submit questions. Team members are encouraged to work with their teachers to get their questions posted.
I think it will do a lot to increase the quality of questions. (hope!)
Oops. I missed that point. Thanks for pointing it out. This is a change for the better.
1 Like
Thanks for the comments, and yes, this is correct. One of the goals behind this new flow is to further encourage a culture where rules questions spur conversations and learning opportunities among teams themselves, rather than just going straight to the public system.
And, of course, give mentors the opportunity to ask their students if they’ve read the game manual before posting their question 
1 Like
May I suggest that all EPs are also allowed to post to the Q&A? Not all event partners run teams.
1 Like
Frustrating at the beginning of the season, since many school based teams like me cannot register until September. Many questions will go unasked until after the June and August updates.
I suspect you will find that other teams have the same misconceptions - so it is likely you will see a rules clarification asked by another team.
Interesting - but you could see this as a means for EPs to connect with the teams in their region
Overall I’m a fan. I do think EP’s should also be aloud to ask questions though.
I am in favor of improving the quality of official Q&A area, and i do think it should be more structured to encourage at least an understanding of what rule is being asked about, but i am not in favor of removing the responsibility from the students. To me, asking for rulings is the same as bringing issues to the head referee at an event, and should be handled by the students. We push for our students to be 100% responsible for themselves at competitions, and as much as we can in the classroom. I don’t think this is a big problem, but i do think it should be taken into consideration before telling the students that an adult must hold their hand to ask questions.
1 Like
This is a little different than a match - there is an overflow of students who are not even filtering the questions with their teammates. How is that right? I think students need to consult one another as a team, then bring forward their concerns up the chain if they can not resolve it.
Hey I have my email and name in my team’s information on robotevents, but I don’t seem to be able to ask any questions. Does anyone know what this is about?
Did you register your teams?
Just did today, and got the confirmation email.
Also, it seemed to me the early Q&A questions were instructive towards the manual updates. I think the GDC is cutting off a feedback loop and is losing some opportunity to sort some things out before we get underway. Maybe if they lock it to only registered teams on Aug 17??
Interesting… I’ll be registering mine this week as well. Probably just a kink. There is a question already posted, though.
I don’t think so considering it was announced the Q&A is live today…
Most of the refs I know are not part of a registered team. Most of the big community members are not part of a registered team at any given time. This is a bad change.
I am okay reading every QA even if it gets long. I have actually offered in the past to vex to help moderate duplicate QAs if they really need it.
1 Like
I had a similar situation. I was shown as secondary contact for three teams, but could not start a question on the Q&A. If you are not the primary contact, have them invite you to each team. Prior to accepting the invitation, be sure your most recent login to robotevents was under your own account. Just seeing your name as contact on the team information form is not the same as being added as a contact through the invitation process.
I agree with @Jobe, @Rick TYler, @sankeydd, and @tabor473.
I like many things about the new system (especially the ability to tag rules), but there are several things I like better about the old system.
Here are a few changes I would suggest:
- Teams could add additional contacts just for the Q&A.
- People who aren’t currently part of teams (especially referees) could also apply for a “license” to post in the Q&A.
- All event partners should automatically be allowed to post in the Q&A, and so should the contacts for teams from the previous year (In the Zone), at least until the game manual is finalized (or until the beginning of September, October, or January).
- To keep the quality of the Q&A good, I would suggest that if someone disobeys the Q&A rules severely enough or often enough, their ability to ask questions could be suspended for a period of time, or even indefinitely.
Right now, if you find a rule you want clarified, there are only three ways to ask the GDC about it before the game manual is finalized: (A) contact someone whose team registered well before August 17th, so they can post the Q&A question for you, (B) be part of a team like that yourself, or © contact the GDC yourself in an unofficial channel.
Full disclosure: Under the current system, I wouldn’t be able to ask Q&A questions this year, unless something changes. My team does not plan to compete this year, due to a recent increase in the workload for our head coach’s full-time job. (Our students might continue in VEX with other teams, but I’m guessing those teams would need all three contact spaces for people from their own organization.)