I noticed in this weeks email blast that worlds will be VEXnet 2.0 only.
If anyone going to worlds is still using VEXnet 1.0 and has not upgraded master code, programming environment etc. now would be a good time to do that rather than during inspection on April 16.
I was excited to see this too!
It also stated in that email blast that each team will be receiving a free set of VEX 2.0 keys.
Maybe this is the reason for the extra 100 dollars registration fee 
I’m wondering about something.
If I recall correctly, VexNet 1.0 is used by the black keys and not the white keys. The white keys use VexNet 2.0. But, teams using the white keys (and VexNet 2.0) might be using a different firmware than the most recent upgrade. Is it possible that teams using the white keys with the old firmware could get the new white keys (provided at Worlds) mixed up with their older white keys (using the non upgraded firmware)?
If I’m not mistaken, if there is a mis-match between the firmware of the white keys and the firmware on the Cortex, then the units will not talk to each other.
If so, is there some way to reduce the likelihood of a mix up?
1.0 is the black and 2.0 is the white.
The only way I can think of to avoid 2.0 firmware mixups is to upgrade firmware 
I know that my team will have multiple laptops there to make sure firmware is updated.
I have had several issues with the firmware versions in the past, but learned how to fix it.
Last year they gave out 2.0 keys in the registration bag as well, but they weren’t mandatory.
Make sure that your Cortex and Joystick are updated to the latest firmware, before you get there. I think it is safe to assume the keys will have the latest firmware if you are getting them there, so if your robot is updated there should be no issues. Last year, and I’m sure this year as well, there was a tech support table for any teams that needed help with firmware updating.
That’s why we put a sticker on each of the keys so each team has their two keys assigned to them. Unfortunately I used an ink jet printer on clear labels and the holder clip rubbed most of the team numbers off. Argh. Live and learn.
A marker swipe on a part can show ownership or a color for versions too.
That’s great advice but it also seems to point to a somewhat Catch-22 situation. If you’ve got everything up to date, then you don’t need the new white keys.
If you have the black keys, then you will get new white keys and probably somebody to help you upgrade everything.
But if you’re getting a set of white keys in your little baggie at Worlds and you already have white keys… and maybe you don’t even know if you have the latest firmware updates… is somebody going to check on that somehow?
My own kids are all set. But I’m wondering about some of the other teams and the possibility of getting white keys mixed up.
With the firmware all up to date you should be able to use both the 1.0 (Black) and 2.0 (White) keys, but the newer and better 2.0 keys are the only ones allowed at Worlds. Most teams probably already have 2.0 keys, so for them the free ones can be an extra set, but the teams that have been using the 1.0 keys need to switch to the new 2.0 keys. With the latest firmware, it should just be a matter of unplugging the old keys and plugging in the new ones.
I don’t know if they will check your firmware, but it is really something that teams should do themselves. If you have the right firmware, everything will connect fine, if not it won’t work and you will probably want to fix that.
Pretty much, regardless of which keys you have, update your firmware beforehand if you are unsure, just to be safe. If there are any issues, there are plenty of people to help you.
I wasn’t trying to create any confusion here, I just found it interesting that it was mentioned in the email.
If you have white keys then get them updated to V1.46, you need master firmware 4.25 to go with that in the cortex. This is the current version shipping with ROBOTC and EasyC. I’m sure new keys given out at worlds will have been updated already.
Last year we were checking team firmware during inspection and updating as necessary.
Will v1.46 be required or will the older v1.43 be allowed which was stable all year long?
I don’t know, that’s a question for VEX.
The problem with V1.43 is that you may be running V4.23 master firmware, that has the competition channel bug and it may it be required to update to V4.25 at such a large event (and therefore need V1.46 on the keys).
Perhaps someone from VEX can comment and what will or will not be mandatory.