| Q1:
|
Which
versions of the West Point Bridge Designer software can I use
to enter the contest? |
|
A1:
|
The only
version of the software you can use to enter the national contest is
the West Point Bridge Designer 2010.
|
| Q2:
|
How
do I submit a design? |
|
A2:
|
Before
you can submit a design, you must register for the contest.
Once you are registered, hit the Enter the
Contest tab above and log in using your Team Name and password.
On your Team Home Page, you will find a file browser, which
you can use to locate the bridge design file you want to submit
for judging. Once you have selected the file, click the Submit
button. You will receive immediate confirmation of your submission
and, if the bridge deisng is valid, you will receive feedback
about your current contest standing. |
| Q3:
|
How
many designs may I submit? |
|
A3:
|
You
may submit as many designs as you like until the end of the
Qualifying Round. |
| Q4:
|
Why
does the website reject duplicate bridge designs? |
|
A4:
|
The website
automatically rejects any design that is structurally identically
to any previously submitted design. We use this system to
ensure that there will not be several teams tied for first
place. This feature also ensures that a contestant cannot
obtain a design from someone else and re-submit it without
modification.
|
| Q5: |
When
I submit a design, the message on my Team Home Page gives me
my "unoffical standing." What is an unofficial standing?
When does it become official? |
| A5: |
As
you should know, the contest rules strictly prohibit the use
of inappropriate Team Names. In order to enforce this rule,
our Contest Coordinator reviews each registration before it
is posted to the contest Scoreboard. This review only occurs
for the top 20 design submissions in each zone--the ones that
are posted to the Scoreboard. Before your team name has been
reviewed, your standing is considered to be "unofficial."
After it has been reviewed and posted to the Scoreboard, it
becomes "official." The official standing typically
does not differ from the unofficial standing by more than
three or four places. Thus the unofficial standing still gives
you a reasonably accurate feedback about how you are doing
in the contest.
|
| Q6:
|
I've
noticed that many of the teams on the Scoreboard are from the
same school. Is this fair? |
| A6: |
Yes. There
is no restriction on the number of teams that may compete
from any given school. There is also no restriction on collaboration
during the Qualifying Round, so even if some of these teams
got a lot of help from their friends, they have not broken
any rules.
Don't
worry! This situation will sort itself out at the end
of the Qualifying Round. According to the rules,
if a given zone has more than one team from a particular school,
we reserve the right to invite more than ten teams
from that zone to compete in the Semi-Final Round.
This will ensure that one school cannot monopolize the top
10 and prevent other teams from getting into the Semi-Finals.
Also, note that collaboration is not authorized during
the Semi-Final Round. Thus teams that have received
a lot of assistance during the Qualifying Round are probably
not going to do very well in the Semi-Finals, when they are
required to work entirely on their own. Finally, note that
no more than two teams from any given zone will be allowed
to compete in the Final Round.
|
| Q7:
|
I
showed my design to a friend, and then he copied it and submitted
it for his team. Now he's ahead of me in the standings--with
the design he took from me! Can you disqualify him for cheating? |
| A7:
|
No,
sorry. What your (former) friend did was not nice, but it was
not cheating. There are no restrictions on collaboration during
the Qualifying Round. And teh rules state, each team is responsible
for safeguarding its own designs. When you shared your design
with your friend, you gave up any right to claim it as your
own. |
| Q8: |
I'm
trying to submit a design to the contest web site, and many
of the links are not working. What's wrong? |
|
A8:
|
The contest
site requires that Javascript (though not Java) be enabled
for your browser. Some extremely security-minded people and
schools may disable Javascript as a precaution. It will have
to be turned on again before you can submit your design. If
you are using your own computer, please consult your browser
documentation for the correct procedure. At school, please
consult with the person who takes care of the school computers
before making any changes.
|
