Welcome to Synthiam!

The easiest way to program the most powerful robots. Use technologies by leading industry experts. ARC is a free-to-use robot programming software that makes servo automation, computer vision, autonomous navigation, and artificial intelligence easy.

Get Started
Asked — Edited

I Am Itchin' To Get Started

A while ago I had mentioned that I would be starting a video podcast that functions as technical classes for homeschool students. I had also mentioned that I would go all in if I did it. Well, I went all in. My office has been converted to a video podcaster's paradise. Last weekend I was able to get the mixer, compressor, gate, Audio interface, green screen, dynamic mics, cameras, lighting and sound dispersion panels installed in my studio. My hosts (Tanner and Stori) both have a JD now and are learning about them by going through the LMS curriculum that was developed. We will start some "test" shows on Thursday evenings which will help the hosts to be more comfortable in front of the camera and allow them to get really comfortable with the robots and the technology behind the video podcast. The podcasts will be live so you will get to see all of the fun if you want to:)

On another project, I have been working with a group in the middle of nowhere Texas that is setting up a ranch for people who have aged out of the foster care system in Texas. Next week I will be setting up their firewall, NAS, domain server, some workstations, network and such. They will be using the class mentioned above for their students to teach them about robotics on the EZ-Robot platform. I want to do a show from the ranch but the logistics could make that difficult.

I will post the links to the video podcast streams later. We will be streaming on Youtube and Twitch. We also will have the RTMP feed available to be viewed directly. We have a mumble room and IRC channel that I will publish also. These allow participation in the discussion that is happening and in the show. Along with that, 662-4ROBOT1 is a direct phone number into the show, and Skype is also available. If you want to check out our early tests, I will post the links later. The official start is on May 6th 2017. We will be broadcasting from our booth at a Homeschool show in Oklahoma City.

I want to also do a show on Saturdays on more generic topics but all relating to technology. Nicholas (my son) will be teaching an Intro to Programming class. The next semester we will move up to intermediate programming and robotics classes.

SM@RT Club is the Patreon support page for the classes. I still have some work to do on it, but it is there at least.
User-inserted image


User-inserted image


User-inserted image


User-inserted image


I guess I still need to clean up some cables...


ARC Pro

Upgrade to ARC Pro

Experience the latest features and updates. You'll have everything that is needed to unleash your robot's potential.

#164  
Thank you so much for implementing this so quickly @DJSures you are the best!
This is great!:D

And sorry again that I was bragging too much about JSON and Webhooks over at the other thread....your were kind of like

User-inserted image



:D:D:D
#165  
I just tested the update to the API.AI plugin. It seems to work very well and greatly reduces the amount of scripting needed. Thank you DJ.

I will post my sample project today, but won't be doing it for a while as I am away from the house for a while.
PRO
United Kingdom
#166  
Fantastic video/tutorial on API.Ai, you have really helped me get a better understanding of the whole thing thanks!

Tony
PRO
USA
#167  
Another great show. I'm really looking forward to implementing API.AI with Alan and ALENA. I look forward to your sample code today.
#169  
I am loving this episode just for you droppin it on the Mac guys!:D

Keep up the good work I really enjoy you robotic roundups!
#170  
Good to see SPOCK under construction. Great show!
#171  
I am taking the night off tonight. I know, I haven't done a show in a month. Here is what has been going on.

Some people on another team made some changes at work that drastically affected the performance (in a negative way) on the database servers that my team manages. Over the past month we have been working very long hours to make things run well for our business users. This got worse last weekend and consumed a lot of time. I am worn out but things are working well again.

While this has been happening, I have been trying to also complete my InMoov for a show on August 1st. This has taken me away from my wife and family a lot. I am taking tonight off to spend time with them. I will be back online next week and hopefully will have a built inmoov to show.
#172  
And work tonight. Ugh. This has got to give at some point.
#173  
Hey, don't worry....one show a week is a huge project!
Its been a nice addition to the forum but you should not worry too much on the weekly thing, we will all be patient!:)
#174  
Hey, how about scaling back to a monthly show? Something to look forward to.

Or, you could do like NetFlex is doing and record a whole season and release at once, However if done that way some of your Technology tips would be surly out of date. You'd have to call it "Technology Yesterday".:D
#175  
Pre-record each 15 minute section as you can. Present it mid month or whenever, after the insanity of work passes.

Once a month would be nice.
#176  
Jeeze you guys get off his back... Let David decide what works best for him. If and when he decides to do another show should be totally up to him....
#177  
Hi Richard, I wasn't trying to jump on David at all. I truly hope he doesn't take it like that. *sick* I admire his talent, ambition and drive.

I was only trying to offer other options that would take some pressure off of David and keep the show alive. I know how much that show means to him. I consider David a friend and was only trying to help a friend out. Dave's posts have sounded like he's been a bit overwhelmed lately. Sometimes when you're butt deep in alligators it's hard to remember that your main objective was to drain the swamp. My intention was to offer a little perspective and support. However, sometimes the pathway to Hades is paved with good intentions.

My apologies to David and others if I offended. :)
#178  
No offence taken at all. Trying to figure out how to get everything done is all. Work isn't helping me out much.

Honestly, it wouldn't have even happened last night anyway. My ISP had issues which took down my internet connection until 1:11 AM.

All good. Once Spock is complete, I will have more time to focus on other things.
#179  
Just an update. I am going to change this to a monthly show I think. There are a couple of reasons for this, but this is largely due to my job role changing this week.

I had mentioned that since June 1st, things at work had not been running smoothly like they had for the previous 3 years or so. This was caused by a different group in IT making some changes without consulting my team on the impact that these changes would have. For about 1 1/2 months my team has been putting in long hours to try to get things back in order. Things got put back in order.

The work that my team does in a critical role to the business that I work for. We manage about 50 database servers of different types for a company that has a lot of federal regulatory requirements. If these databases are not performing well, these regulatory requirements can't be met and the company goes under.

Due to this issue and due to some other business restructuring, my roll has changed with the company to have more responsibilities covering a much larger area which requires a far more time consuming approach right now so I wont have near the time to prep for this weekly show. There were many job losses but the team that reported to me hasn't been affected by this restructuring. For this, I am thankful.

I managed one of those groups that was very quiet. People knew we were there but didn't really pay attention to us until something wasn't working. In the past 3 years, there have been a handful of issues that caused us to be noticed. All of these were caused by an outside vendor. This time the issue was caused internally and because of this, changes have been made to prevent it from happening as easily again. My team always said that nobody cares about what we do until something bad happens. Fortunately or unfortunately, they all care now.

While having been in a managerial role before, the role I am now taking is much more managerial and less hands on. As managerial roles go, at first there is a lot of work to get things structured as they should be and then hopefully things calm down more. My hope is that this happens sooner rather than later but we will see.

I have been in Dallas over much of the last week. I hope to make it back home by this evening to do a show.
#180  
Best of luck Dave. Sounds like you've some great decisions.
#181  
It looks like its time for me to shop for a new ISP. outage 3 weeks in a row on friday evening. Frustrating.