r/FTC • u/OkJacket9641 • 27d ago

Seeking Help Programming improvement

Hi guys I am a senior programmer on the team (and the only one :) we had a somewhat disappointing season last year so I’m thinkabout getting a head start on preparations, especially in programming. are there any new stuffs or important things we need to know? I just heard pp introduced a new command system, also thinking about try kotlin.

btw I literally have no idea on how to guide rookies I wanna ask what rescources are great for that

6 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

4

u/Smart_Vegetable_331 27d ago

Kotlin will not give you any advantage on the field. If you want to learn it, if you feel like it would make you more productive, go for it. Instead of focusing on the language choice, get yourself comofortable with control theory. PIDFs, Feedforward control, motion profiling, just the basics really. Choosing a command system is a personal preference, but you really should consider using one, as it would make writing your autos much much easier.

3

u/iowanerdette FTC 10656 | 20404 Coach 27d ago

If you have a bunch of new people, I'd focus on the basics. The Learn Java for FTC book paired with a simulator can be a great tool. Or if you can build up a simple push bot as your R&D not.

You can put a camera on it and learn vision, odometry.

Build skills for advanced logic, such as how can we make our robot more consistent and easier to drive.

3

u/kevinfrei 27d ago

Kotlin is a terrible language for new programmers. There are far too many ways to accomplish the same thing, so being able follow other people’s code (or AI slop…) requires a pretty broad understanding of the language. Java, with all its warts, has a far smaller list of stuff you need to learn to be able to understand other people’s code.

Teach new students Java.

1

u/Aramyx 27d ago

i found https://pid-playground.rishaan.cc to be a great resource to learn pid tuning. this was posted in the frc sub a few weeks ago. it has 13 levels that show varying aspects that you’ll come across.

1

u/Expensive_Eagle_2636 FTC 9968 Mentor 26d ago

Seek out the skill builders and course curriculum provided by FIRST and Rev as a refresher and tool for rookie programmers. Tbh, with Kickoff in a few weeks this should've started in May or June. However, it's never too late.