The Fra needs a defrag

I have just been ooking at the current setup of the Fra and i think it needs a bit of a shakeup for 2009. I just wanted to know what others thought if my opinions.

1... There needs to be a change on the regional reps. there seems to be too many areas and not enough reps. Who represents Scotland?. so if the areas were split up into 3 areas... South, Midlands and North.

2... On the contacts page the technical contacts need changing. No offence to Mike Lambert but he doesnt do robots anymore and if i were to ask for Pneumatic advice I wouldnt ask him. And does Mr stu still maintain the site? I might be wrong but i dont think he does, and is Paul Hunt the same Paul Hunt from the hydra team or the Shredder team.

3... Who is the heavyweight rep and antweight rep and is Alan Young still the rep for feathers and middles?

i am sure there is more that needs subtle changes that i havent spotted yet.

President: Andy Kane
Chairman: Geoff Smith
Secretary:
Mainland Europe: Marco van Hek

What actually is Marco, is he Mainland Europe or does he need a specific title perhaps. There is no secretary so mabee the Secretary should be removed?

Ok Swanny here goes my view. Yes the FRA does need a shake up, I keep harping on about this but when was the last time your rep asked you about your views? (general question to everyone). I know people are busy but if they arent prepared to put atleast a bit of effort in they shouldnt have stood in the first place.

The webiste definitly needs updating, i believe that Paul Hunt is the one from the shredder team.

Alan was told that as an EO he could no longer be the FW/MW rep, so there currently isnt one. My view is that the regional reps are there for all of us and we dont actually need weight reps anymore.

There is no secretary although at the last meeting I went to Karoline was nominated to be membership secretary for 2009. Marco has also stood down as overseas rep (or whatever the title is).

Is there another FRA meeting scheduled? Would be interested to see if any non-committee members know as it seems only committee members are told about when the meetings are. Again said it before but how are we supposed to have anykind of input to our organisation if we dont know when the meetings are?

And does Mr stu still maintain the site? I might be wrong but i dont think he does

wrong Shane - i do hence the little sentance at the bottom of the page http://www.fightingrobots.co.uk/index.htmhttp://www.fightingrobots.co.uk/index.htm.

I dont maintain the forum though anymore which is more intense than updating rules/news etc.

Mr Stu

i dont think mike or paul coopers advice section needs to be removed as its pretty much all still relivant..

Mikes advice helped me alot when i started up, i remember spending about an hour on the phone to him plumbing up my first bot, and i was very greatful for his help. Thanks to Mike lambert, paul cooper and Alan wood im now pretty compitent with pneumatics (helps that ive got qualifications in pneumatic and fluid power aswell)

For advice.. the forum is still going to be a better means of communication then any guide section.

I know Mike has great knowledge of pneumatics but does he want people asking him now he doesnt do the sport. Paul Cooper and Alan Wood are very helpful still but they are not on the Tech list. Mabee they should be. Mabee it seems you got me wrong dave. I dont want any threads moved just suggesting we update the names on the home pages of the website.

This wasnt meant to be a rant of any sort just my opinion on the forum needing a shakeup. I also dont mean to offend anyone and their knowledge.

At the end of the day the place where people come to see what we do needs updating and cleaning up a little. If roboteers put in their input then we could get the FRA website updated and ready for a nice new year of roboteering.

For your info Mike Lambert is still very much involved and continues to be a member of the FRA

Thats good to hear Karoline. Do you not have an opinion on any of the other things i have brought up?

well i think its a valid point to be honest...

Ive just had a look through it and yes, i think the FRA needs a bit of a shake up.

Lets face it, things are ticking over, and im sure 2009 is going to be yet another busy year of events.

It just needs a bit of time to get things updated.... i think all the technical advisors and regional reps etc..should be asked the question if they want to keep thier positions... with head of of office moving aorund in April, its a good idea to shake things up and maybe some re-elections.

John
http://www.RoamingRobots.co.ukwww.RoamingRobots.co.uk

Mabee the FRA would benefit from active Roboteers or not even roboteers but people who are active in the community. For instance i have seen more advice been given on the forum from Alan Wood than anyone else. Leo Van Miert and Mario also are very good advisers. Mabee their names should be put forward as new advisors. There are many more advisors too on various subjects for instance Mabee Jonno could be a general advisor for his events so people visiting the website know who to contact. Same with Robots live and all the others. Even a contact for Fanfic is needed as that part of the forum is overlooked but is posted on the most.

im more than happy for my contact details to be put forward, i get a lot of phone calls and emails all the itme asking for advice... not even just for events....

I Do draw the line on giving advice about unwanted pregnancies though LOL :)

Youve hit the nail... the FRA lacks do-ers... and has to many talkers. People need to chip in a bit more when they can !

John

Swanny, whilst I hardly go to any events I still love the sport. I only gave it up due to a total lack of time. However, I still answer a lot of emails asking for advice and I still read the forum. I have no objection, in fact, I am even very proud that people think of me to ask for advice.

Ask away and to Mr. Moulds, thankyou for your kind words. Its nice when people listen, learm put into practice and then build a bloody good machine at the end of it.

Happy New year to you all.

Best regards. Mike.

oi lambert.... happy new year.... if your getting lots of emails..... keep up the good work !! :-)

Hello Mr Lambert nice to hear from you. I had no idea you were still active on the robot front simply because i havent seen you post in a while. Plese dont be offended by my opinions. The website needs an update and now we know your still available for advice then cool. If your still active then mabee you can give your opinion on the website and if it needs a shake up fr 2009. And for gods sake turn up to an event so we can have a beer :)

Shane, until the next election at least Ive taken over the duties of Marco as rep for DRG in Holland and Belgium. FYI

No opinion at the moment as I am away from home and have plenty of other stuff to think about and do at the moment which is FRA related

thanks Shane for bringing our corner of the boards to peoples attention. Id be in favour of a fanfic representative, I know to most people it looks like a group of fantasists playing around with numbers and adjectives but it does get people - me included - into real robots, and we also do post on this forum far more than most people as Shane has said so us budding roboteers should at least be able to have a say in the running of the website we rely on.
I freely admit that trying to get a fanfic representative will be somewhat frustrating, but it should pay off for both sides. :)

As for the main website...quite frankly it desperately needs some sort of change, theres nothing on there to suggest that the sport is alive and kicking in the way that it is, most activity happens on the forum which is great but what about the site that is the face of the organisation to newcomers? The most recent thing on there is from 2006 iirc, its almost three years on now and it needs something to suggest that were active.

The structure was something I discussed with Shane on MSN, cant really add much to whats already been said but regional reps are supposed to be the voices of the roboteers, and if theyre not themselves going to events and listening then theyre not doing the job they were elected to do at all.

Just my 2 cents, in the hope someone will listen.

:)

I am listening, and have been watching this thread with interest.

The structure of the FRA was set up when there were more active members - and it was the voice of the roboteers when dealing with Mentorn.

The face of roboteering has changed so much in the past 5 years, and the FRA needs to catch up. In April there will be a new President, Chairman and secretary so I am sure things will change. BUT if roboteers sit on their hands and cannot be bothered to vote - which happened last time - then the incentive to do things on their behalf will quickly fade.

There is a committee meeting sometime in January, so if people have suggestions please post them here. I can guarantee that it will be high on the meetings agenda.

I am off to inspect a new arena today.............

Trev

what are the vistor figures for the site in question? just wondering how popular it is

when i first got into this sport my first stop was the roaming robots site which gave me loads of hope and enjoyment looking through, then Jonno told me about this place and i only looked at the FRA Home Page because i saw the tiny link to the top left of this forum

Thanks for your post Trev and your support as my regional rep. I will send you an Email on some points i think need changing and updating and if you would be so good as to pass them on that would be great.

The site i am reffering to Alex is this site as a whole. It needs a serious update and to be kept updated.

Well its 5 years old so no wonder, i personaly hate the damn site.

Mr Stu

Last time I was in a conversation about unique vistors to the FRA home page..... im sure it was about 100,000 per month.... if you do any google search its up there near the top of the list.

From what ive heard there is going to be a meeting in January 2009.

People should seriously consider contacting their regional reps with any concerns or advice... or even if they want to volunteer help !!

Remember noone gets paid in the FRA, everyone does it in their own spare time. Its easy to say we need to do this, and we need to do that.... but what it needs is more do-ers and less critics.

If your regional rep isnt doing a good job..... then go to another rep with your views.

Trevor is my rep, and he does a good job..... a few more nights at his local pub would be better though !! :-)

John

What about having a refresh/update of the site etc in April to tie in with the head of office elections, to signal the start of term for the new person/people?

The time from then till now could be used to ask members for their opinions or any issues they wish to raise for discussion (or for us members to contact our regional reps to get our own views out there) and to gain an overall idea of how the sport should progress/what an updated site could offer.

Maybe it could be worth having North, Midlands and South regions to simplify things a bit, as Shane suggested in the opening post. There are currently only three of us in Scotland that are active in roboteering through the FRA, hardly warrants having our own region and regional rep, so it would possibly be more practical to group us into a North category.

I talk more than I do in regards to contributing to the community, however I see myself as a bit-part member due to only managing to a couple of events a year; Id like to be more of a do-er though so Ill aim to be more constructive in future :)

It may come as a surprise to many, but what is posted on the forum does drive the actions of the committee, as it is the only place that we - roboteers - congregate, and speak our mind. I scan the forum every day, so, if concerns are raised the committee members are well aware of what is going on.

It is difficult to arrange meetings as many members live long distances, so there are times when we are reacting to events rather than driving things forward.

Jamie, because you live in Scotland and can only do selected events does not make you any less of an FRA member.

We congregate daily on the forum whether you are a regular poster or just a reader. Without the internet the sport would not exist as this is the only place I can find out about events and any news/gossip that occurs in our community.

The point I am trying to get across, badly, is that many feel that they have no voice, when in fact by posting here everybody gets to get involved. What saddens me is that when the membership is asked for its opinion in the form of voting for committee members, very few actually do.

I rarely go to the front page but if members feel that we can improve the service, then say what you want. If enough people ask then it will get done. The committees job is to serve its membership, unfortunately, many feel that they are being led by the nose, so keep their views to themselves.

Trev

heres a new concept... dont shoot me if you disagree..,,

Out of the reps, theres two people which i see actively post on the forum, and actually have an opinion on things. The others i dont.

Why not change the reps from the regions, to just two positions... a north rep and south rep, and utilise what weve got.

I vote Trevor for the North, and Karoline for the South. Eveyone has a point of contact which they know are active, and will represent a roboteers view for them.

And then again, add some extra points of contact on the list.. event organisors.... woody... mike etc....

I dont think theres anything wrong with the front page.

JOhn

On the front page there are links and its in those links that needs updating and changing. The meetings should be updated as soon as there has been one arranged. All i get on the support page is a load of usless text. The contacts defo need updating and definatley someone as a point of contact for the fanfic section which is constantly overlooked. There is a vote being done to decide who that contact shall be being done right now. Dont forget even vapourbots belong in the community and there are lots of talented people in fanfic. Woody at the moment is the most helpful person on the forum by miles. He definatly needs to be a point of contact if he wants to be that is. I think April is too far away for change. Why not just change it and be done and the new posts will have a new set of contacts and know whats what. The sooner the better for me. There is a meeting in Jan and i think it should start there.

ok so whos going to volunteer to do it ?

Volunteer? Maybe Shanghai is a more appropriate word :)

what does that mean.... im havoing a blonde moment!!??

The dictionary definitions thanks to thefreedictionary.com
1. To kidnap (a man) for compulsory service aboard a ship, especially after drugging him.
2. To induce or compel (someone) to do something, especially by fraud or force.

:)

Option 2 sounds right up Jonnos street.:)

ahhh ok...
clive if your offering option 2.. im up for it :)

Has there been any progress made on this topic yet? Im still quite interested in a FRA revamp, and the forum especially. :)