VCU Imagine Cup 2006

Epilogue to come...

2006-08-21T06:50:00.000-04:00

We have been home for a week now. The flight was a harrowing experience of: militant (literally) security at New Delhi airport, nearly 16 hours in the air, 7 hours of waiting around at Newark and a broken ERJ-145 on the way back to Richmond. However, we were treated to a scenic route back to Richmond which included a cruise along the coast on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. I can certainly guess that all of us - Joanne, Brooks, Brandon, Will and myself - crashed HARD when we finally got home. What an experience!

I have more sights, insights and thoughts to share on VCU's second top 12 showing in as many years. The blogging abruptly stopped this time as I suffered from an acute gastro-intestinal illness courtesy and compliments of India. I would like to personally reflect on going to India and what it has meant for our school, our students and myself.

I have received news that this academic year's Imagine Cup competition is going to be so radically different that we, as a school, have just about ZERO hope of repeating our performance. This is regrettable, but not confirmed. When I know more about the coming year's format, I will encourage and coach students to go for it again. However, for now, we can all monitor www.imaginecup.com and see what emerges.

For those interested, watch this space in the days to come for video clips and reflections on India.

We are in New Delhi Now

2006-08-10T05:17:00.000-04:00

Hello,

We've taken a 6 hour bus ride from Agra to New Delhi this morning. The traffic was a model of chaos and we all have varoius clips and pictures of the journey. We are relaxing at our hotels at the moment. In a few hours we will know which of the top six teams (brazil, italy, norway, denmark, japan, china) will take home the Imagine Cup.

Our accomodations in New Delhi are every bit as extravagant as were those in Agra. The students are at the Shangri-La Hotel while most of the press and faculty advisors are here with me in the Taj Mahal Hotel (both being in New Delhi).

Remember to look at the pictures on Will Calder's flickr site.

Not this time...

2006-08-09T09:53:00.000-04:00

Well folks, we did as well as last year and that's everything to be proud of. The following teams moved forward tonight at 6:30 P.M. local time: China, Japan, Norway, Denmark, Italy and Brazil.

PocketDoc remains placed somewhere between 6th and 12th, which is very similar to last year's performance. The competition was STIFF and was tougher this year than last for certain. Our students did exceptionally well and have EVERYTHING to be proud of. I know that I am EXCEEDINGLY proud of Joanne Cunningham, Brooks Hollar, Brandon Saunders and Will Calder.

If you get a chance, congratulate the students, they have done proudly by the USA, VCU and themselves.

We have plenty of fun ahead of us in India!

Thanks for all of your support for our team.

The Round Two presentation video

2006-08-09T08:58:00.000-04:00

Here's PocketDoc round two video.

Comments and Accomodations

2006-08-08T22:40:00.000-04:00

I have been told that I had comment moderation on for the blog, I've turned it off such that your comments show up immediately. Please send us little notes for others to see here.

Our next hotel is the Shangri-La New Delhi and it looks to be as luxuriant as the the Jaypee Palace. Microsoft India have been extremely gracious hosts. Everyone has made the students and attendees feel welcome and special. I am certainly no connoisseur of 5-star hotels, this is only the second I've stayed at in my life, but the hospitality is utmost. Honestly, you'd think we were all principals of the East India Trading company on some estate with the way we are all formally and graciously honered with each encounter with hotel staff and Microsoft staff.

They are making us feel special.

The Second Round

2006-08-08T21:49:00.000-04:00

Good morning from wonderful and steamy Agra

Yesterday afternoon at 4:10 P.M. team PocketDoc, representing the USA, competed in the secound round of the Software Design Invitational. I have video of their performance, but, as usual, it takes quite a while to process the video and get it out in a web-friendly format to you. I'll be working on that with Brooks Hollar this morning.

When you see the video, I think you'll agree that the team did EXCEPTIONALLY well. They were well-liked by the judges and really hit a comfortable and authoritative stride with them. Thus, we entered into the evening with confidence and exuberant celebration.

Today, there are sightseeing trips to the various momenuments and historical sites here in Agra. One excursion is to an ancient fort where students actually get to caulk, garden, and generally assist the a real restoration project - this is unique and is proving popular with the students. In the afternoon, we get to see the Taj Mahal - it is very exciting.

We will receive news on whether we place in the top six this evening at 6:30 P.M. local time. The twelve countries we are competing against are:

Russia, Croatia, Italy, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Japan, China, Brazil, Slovenia, India

I have seen each of these teams present at the science fair and they represent considerable competition. However, our team is sharp and posses many advantages.

Say a prayer, meditation, or thought for our students - they are on the brink of really breaking through with this one. PocketDoc has accomplished SO MUCH thus far and are within reaching distance of perhaps taking the whole competition.

THIS IS EXCITING!!!

More to come soon...

On to the Second Round!!!!!!

2006-08-08T03:51:00.000-04:00

We are riding on cloud 9000000000000000!!!

For the second year in a row, VCU wins nationally!
For the second year in a row, VCU places in the top 12 Internationally!!!

BUT WAIT!!! THAT'S NOT ALL!!!

Team PocketDoc will now compete towards making the final six. We present in the second round at 4:10 P.M. local time. We will be making a 35 minute presentation as opposed to the 20 minute presentation. We have a chance to go to the top six and BEYOND!!!!!!

This is simply amazing; truly, truly, truly amazing. PocketDoc is proudly representing the United States and Virginia Commonwealth University. I will be filming their 35 minute presentation and will get that out to you ASAP tonight. We won't have the results of tonight's round two competition until at least tomorrow.

CONGRATULATIONS POCKET DOC!!!

The Olympics...

2006-08-08T02:45:00.000-04:00

"...this is like the Olympics of software development..." - A. Brooks Hollar, 08-08-2006

It is indeed. During the science fair today you get the truest sense of the incredible amount of work that went into the incredibly innovative projects for the Software Development Invitational here in Agra. I have taken some video of various projects and the work presented is impressive. These stdents had to win out over all others in their country, undertaking many hours of work and diligence, and now, everything is up for grabs in the winner-takes-all stakes of the International competitions.

The Imagine Cup grows and grows.

We find out in about 30 minutes whether PocketDoc moves onward in the competition.

More to come...

Competition begins

2006-08-07T18:48:00.000-04:00

Hello from Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. Agra, is home to one of the world's seven wonders, the Taj Mahal. We are staying in the Jaypee Palace Hotel, which is opulent to say the least. We will visit the Taj Mahal on Wednesday and some of the team members have already made forays into Agra city for shopping and sight seeing. Not to worry about them, they are actually accompanied by an escort AND an armed guard. It is not uncommon to see automatic weapons on the street in Agra at least - we're definately not in Kansas... erm, Virginia anymore.

India is a heady brew to take in at once - the stunning scenery, culture, cuisine and history sits alongside brutal poverty the likes of which none of our team have seen with our own eyes. The people are gracious thus far and Microsoft has, as usual, pulled out all the stops. I think our exposure to Indian people and culture will accelerate towards the end of our stay as those days are more geared towards touring and outings.

Team PocketDoc began their competition yesterday morning (08/07/2006) with a "lightening" round during which they had seven minutes to familiarize their judges with their project and "break the ice." This lightening round would not be scored. Joanne Cunningham made this shorter presentation and did a great job. Team PocketDoc has been placed into one of the four divisions which divide the 41 teams competing in the Software Design competition. Recall that that software design competition is the flagship and central competition among others such as short film, interface design, algorithm and animation competitions.

In our immediate division (Godavari, named after a river in India) we are competing against teams from Indonesia, Malta, Morocco, Guatemala, Poland, Russia (last year's winning country), Denmark, Sri Lanka and France

The remaining 32 teams are from the following countries: Tunisia, Germany, Japan, Belgium, Brazil, Algeria, Hong Kong, Portugal, Malaysia, Austria, United Kingdom, Norway, Italy, Croatia, South Africa, Mexico, Columbia, Turkey, Thailand, Canada, Taiwan, Korea, Slovenia, Spain, China, India, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Egypt and Australia.

At 2:00 P.M. local time (we are 9 1/2 hours ahead of EDT) , team PocketDoc entered into their first round of competition and their first opportunity to be scored (and eliminated). I captured their presentation on video and can honestly tell you that it was the BEST they have given thus far. The competition space was noisy, poorly lighted and cramped, but the video gives you a sense of our team rising to and above the challenge.

Watch the video of their first round in Agra

The team is in high spirits and partook of some much-needed rest and relaxation after their 20-minute presentation today. Tomorrow, they will present at a "science fair" where the media can interview them and sample a demonstration of their project. By noon local time, team PocketDoc will know if they are one of the twelve teams chosen to move on to the second round of competition. The six winners in the second round compete for the Imagine Cup on Thursday when we return to New Delhi.

Will Calder has been taking lots of great photos with his nifty 35mm digital camera. Rather than link to his pictures here, I will direct you to his space on flickr.com.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/willcalder/

It is actually early in the morning here, but my sleep schedule is still a little off. To top it off, some of us are already getting a little "Delhi belly" from the spicy Indian food. I will make an entry here as soon as possible once I know whether or not team PocketDoc has moved ahead in the competition towards the coveted Imagine Cup.

We're here!

2006-08-06T22:44:00.000-04:00

Hello to all.

Team PocketDoc (Joanne Cunningham, Brandon Saunders, Brooks Hollar and Will Caulder) and their faculty mentor (me - Jeffry Babb) have all arrived safely in Agra. We've actually been here for about 24 hours, but the grueling 14 + hour flight, 6 hour loiter and 4.5 hour crawl by motorcoach in the still of the night effectively put us down on Sunday. There were some festivities on Sunday, but they were sporadically attended by a very groggy team.

Expect more news, photos and video in the hours and days to come.

Team PocketDoc mentioned in the blogosphere

2006-05-23T14:06:00.000-04:00

Here's a blog entry on team PocketDoc mentioned at the Business Growth Network blog.

Microsoft press release

2006-05-11T05:43:00.000-04:00

Here's the press release Microsoft has sent out:

http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2006/may06/05-05USImagineCup2006PR.mspx

There was a nice party...

2006-05-11T05:41:00.000-04:00

The School of Engineering held a nice party for the Imagine Cup teams. Channel 12 and a radio station from Fredericksburg were onhand. Also, Dr. Robert J. Mattauch, the Dean of the School of Engineering and, Dr. Eugene Trani, the President of the University both came to speak to the winning team. I will post pictures soon.

The VCU blurb

2006-05-08T13:57:00.000-04:00

Here's VCU's news piece. It was a hybrid CS/IS team that won last year.

And the press begins to roll in...

2006-05-08T01:22:00.000-04:00

Here is a Yahoo News entry on our winning team and the Imagine Cup competition in general.

Here is WTVR's blurb.

VCU continues to raise the bar!

I hope to work with others in the University to coordinate more news coverage in the coming days.

How we did: we are national champs! That's how we did...

2006-05-08T01:01:00.000-04:00

VCU Wins the National Finals in the Microsoft Imagine Cup Software Design Competition

After an hour or so wait, the judges came back with the results of the National Finals...

1st Place: Team PocketDoc (Virginia Commonwealth University)
2nd Place: Emergency Stick (University of Nebraska)
3rd Place: GenkiNet (East Tennessee State University)

WE WON!!! WE WON!!! WE WON!!!

I was beside myself! We (VCU) had gone to the national competition and won the right to compete internationally 2 YEARS IN A ROW!!! My goodness!!! Our students beat out at least 415 other students in the United States (150 total teams) since last Fall to come in first place this year.

To give some perspective on what this will mean internationally in India, look at this table:

Number of students entered from each country

There are tens of thousands of students going for top honors internationally. All of them will know, for the second year in a row, that Virginia Commonwealth University is a force to be reckoned with - full stop!

Of course, Team PocketDoc was ecstatic about their win. These students won $8,000 and the right to represent the United States in August in New Delhi India!

Team PocketDoc receives their check. How will that fit on the airplane?

Our Winners!!!

What a Tremendous Victory!

Moving Forward...

The real work actually starts now. I will continue to work with this team through the summer until their departure to India. I will also continue to keep readers of this blog up-to-date on how the team progresses towards India. Please keep reading and please stay tuned. Also, reflect on just how much of an accomplishment this is for our students and our school. I think it goes without saying that Microsoft is an innovative and influential force in the world of information technology. That we are consistently excelling in their competition - a competition that is exponentially growing outside the United States - speaks volumes concerning the credibility of our students' skills and of the quality of our University.

Thank you for your support.

How we did: Part 3

2006-05-08T00:44:00.000-04:00

VCU does well

I left this story off at the elimination rounds. Team PocketDoc, all Comp Sci grad students, prevailed in their elimination bracket on Friday and also eliminated Team Asclepius in that elimination round - this was a bittersweet moment. On the one hand, VCU had made it into the top 3 this year, but on the other hand, another of our strong teams was bumped. Team 7 degrees were also eliminated in their round. This had Team PocketDoc (Joanne, Brooks, Will and Brandon) all moving up to the TOP 3!!!

Team PocketDoc awaits visitors at their presentation booth

Final Elimination: VCU WINS!!!

It came down to the University of Nebraska, East Tennessee State University and Virginia Commonwealth University all vying for top honors on Friday afternoon. VCU's finalists, Team PocketDoc, went first and gave a dynamic and well-executed performance.

Team PocketDoc gives a command performance

Team PocketDoc fields tough questions from the judges

PocketDoc gave a strong 20-minute presentation which demonstrated the finer aspects of their patient-doctor health-management system which featured both the Pocket PC and Tablet PC prominently. Generally, while the other teams were strong, it became increasingly evident that PocketDoc was indeed very strong in the competition.

The University of Nebraska Team

The East Tennessee State University Team

How we did: Part 2

2006-05-06T14:05:00.000-04:00

Elimination Rounds

While some of our teams continued to speak with visitors at their "Science Fair" booth, others were quietly pulled away to conduct their elimination presentation.

Team PocketDoc awaits their elimination round

As teams took turns in the elimination rounds, our teams supported each other and discussed the competition around them from other schools, such as the University of Washington, University of Nebraska, Northeastern, and others.

One of last year's winners, John McKeon, offers advice to one of this year's winners, Will Calder

Manoj Thomas was also on hand to offer support and advice

The Results of Elimination Rounds

It turns out that Team Asclepius, with their TypeZero Diabetes monitoring application, had to enter the same elimination bracket as Team PocketDoc. This made for tense competition between two of our teams as both were fairly matched with respect to the completeness of their application. Both teams did incredibly well during their presentations and both received high marks from their judges. However, it was very clear that one of these teams would eliminate the other. Just at about lunch time we discovered that Team PocketDoc had eliminated Team Asclepius in their bracket.

Team 7 degrees was also eliminated during their preliminary round as the competition was intense. Team PocketDoc, however, had clearly made it into the top 3. PocketDoc and VCU had now earned another year's worth of respect just for placing in the top 3.

More to follow...

The Competition Details: How We Did

2006-05-05T22:02:00.000-04:00

Hi, now that I have the quick announcement out, I can give a detailed account. First, I know I promised updates throughout the day, but Microsoft would not allow access to the Internet, so I was unable to connect.

May 5th Dawns

Our student teams awoke to catch a bus to Building 42 and 43 on the Microsoft Redmond Campus. These buildings are noteworthy for housing many of Microsoft's developers. Our students quickly set up their "Science Fair" projects which consisted of posterboard and two LCD monitors from which their application could be demonstrated. A typical setup looked like this:

Here is Team 7 Degrees at their presentation booth

Team Asclepius is looking sharp

Competition Begins

Teams were split off into arbitrary "regions" such that further competition for elimiation was possible. Team PocketDoc left first and did very well. Team Asclepius followed soon thereafter and gave a stellar performance. Despite a few problems related to the lack of Internet connectivity in the building, Team 7 Degrees went last. I assume our students did as well as I am indicating as I actually was not given the privilege of attending their elimination presentations - Microsoft felt my presence would be a distraction. However, Tina, Manoj and I were able to attend the science fair demonstrations.

Team 7 Degrees show off their stuff

More to follow...

VCU is #1 In the United States - AGAIN!

2006-05-05T21:53:00.000-04:00

I have to get this one out first. Team Pocket Doc: Brooks Hollar, Joanne Cunningham, Will Calder and Brandon Saunders, have WON the Microsoft Imagine Cup Software Design National Finals in Redmond Washington!!!

They will represent the United States and Virginia Commonwealth University in the International competition in New Delhi, India in late July 2006 or early August 2006.

Here are our winners:

We're all here

2006-05-05T03:30:00.000-04:00

The teams have arrived and are gearing up for the competition. All are settling in and preparing to give their best.

Team Asclepius have ascended the Space Needle in order to raise their spirits...

Team Pocket Doc take a moment to enjoy a spring-time garden....

Team 7 Degrees enjoy a jovial moment from their hard work...

Later, a few teams have a meal together to celebrate their journey thus far...

Tomorrow is the big day!

I will provide updates throughout the day on the progress our teams are making. The big times to watch for news would be shortly after 1:00 P.M. PDT and 5:00 P.M. PDT. It is at or shortly after these times that we should know exactly how our teams have done in the competition.

It's a beautiful day...

2006-05-04T13:06:00.000-04:00

Can you really get three days of pure springtime sunshine in the Pacific Northwest?

YES YOU CAN!

Arrival...

2006-05-04T03:54:00.000-04:00

Over the last 24 hours, VCU students and faculty have been arriving to the Seattle area. It has been a BEAUTIFUL few spring days here with clear skies and cool breezes. Seattle is also known as the Emerald City, and Washington the Evergreen State, for good reason: there are beautiful pine trees everywhere!

As the students have found their way to their hotel and have settled in, we have all been welcomed by a picturesque Northwest backdrop:

The Space Needle

Mount Ranier

Ferries across Puget Sound

The City!

Tomorrow, Thursday May 4th, things should begin to crank up with the competition. While students do not actually compete until Friday, May 5th, some preliminary activities are planned for the students.

I will include reports of student progress and fun tomorrow. I should also have pictures of the students by then - both at work and play.

Our students continue to push onward...

NBC 12 Coverage

2006-05-02T03:16:00.000-04:00

Team Asclepius invited NBC Channel 12 in Richmond to their practice today, May 1st, to do a report. Great hustle team. The report aired on the 5:30 news program.

Jeff

Welcome to the journey...

2006-05-01T23:11:00.000-04:00

Hello, my name is Jeffry Babb and I am the faculty advisor to three groups of amazing students from Virginia Commonwealth University who are competing in the Microsoft Imagine Cup Software Design Invitational National Finals in Redmond, Washington on May 4-7, 2006. I will use this space to keep interested parties up-to-date on the VCU teams' progress as they compete.

Some background...
VCU's Department of Information Systems first became involved with the Imagine Cup in during the 2003-2004 academic year when Chris Stewart, Matt Nuckols and Matt Morton (all IS undergraduate students) competed in that year's competition. The team called themselves "Project Linden" and developed software for the Tablet PC which assisted learning management for autistic children. The team placed in the regional finals above teams like Princeton, among others. Dr. Redmond and Manoj Thomas provided mentorship and advising this year.

During the 2004-2005 academic year, I became involved with advising the student teams from VCU. The theme that year was: "Imagine a world where technology breaks the barriers between us..."

VCU fielded three teams in 2004-2005. Team VxNet consisted of Patricia Ligon, Nathan Morse, Jonathan Lumpkin and Aditya Mehta. Team VxNet placed second in their regional competition with an application designed to help the administration of vaccinations and vaccination data in the case of national disasters and emergencies. An second team, consisting of Hiren Patel, Alpesh Patel and Yueh Hai Wong, fielded an entry focusing on RFID retail applications.

National Victors!
Of course the highlight of the 2004-2005 Imagine Cup experience at VCU was team ECECIS/LiNK. John Sells (Computer Science), John McKeon (Information Systems) and James Barret (Information Systems) won the National Finals at Redmond in May 2005. Team went on to represent the United States at the International Finals in Yokohama, Japan in July 2005. Team LiNK presented a Tablet PC application which assisted in early childhood education and hand-writing skills. The team presented their application exceedingly well and placed 8th Internationally - this accomplishment was a source of great pride for the team and for VCU.

Imagine Cup 2005-2006: Off to take the title again!
With a fresh national win under our belt, I started off the 2005-2006 school year with a drive towards including students from other disciplines: escpecially computer science. By the end of the Fall Semester 2005, three teams had emerged with an eye towards claiming the top prize. The teams from VCU became a near 50/50 mix of Computer Science and Information Systems students. The theme for the 2005-2006 competition is: "Imagine a world where technology allows us to live heathier lives..."

A team of computer science graduate students came as a welcome surprise. Team PocketDoc consists of Joanne Cunningham, Brooks Hollar, Will Calder and Brandon Saunders. This team has developed a Pocket PC application which assists doctors and patients in the administration of their medications, procedures and treatments in the doctor's absence.

A second team will go to Seattle as Patricia Ligon (a returning competitor), Hiren Patel (a returning competitor), Marius McCray and Omar Belkacemi. This team is fielding an application focusing on cross-cultural relationship management such that those entering new cultures can relieve the stress of blending in with that culture. Project 7 Degrees uses a Smart Phone as an agent to smooth over the anxiety of entering new cultures.

Our hybrid Computer Science and Information Systems team this year is Team Asclepius. Jamie Pinkham (Information Systems), Ben Rinaca (Information Systems), Worth Becker (Information Systems) and Aaron Dandy (Computer Science) have created a Pocket PC application which eases the burden of diabetes management for those afflicted with the disease. The application provides an interface between the doctor and patient such that the disease can be monitored and managed conviently.

Competition structure
In order to compete in Redmond, Washington on May 4-7, 2006, the VCU teams had to pass several elimination rounds. The first elimination round occured in February 2006 whereby the applicant list was whittled down to 50 teams from universities across the United States. Teams were restricted to no more than 4 students per team. All three VCU teams passed this round. A further elimination round occured in April 2006 and the list of teams was shortened to 15 teams from schools across the United States. That's right, VCU dominates 20% of the final competition!

More to come...
I am posting this on the eve of departing to Redmond to support the teams as advisor and mentor. I will also have the able support of Tina Babb (my wife) and Manoj Thomas (IS Faculty) this time out. We are all EXTREMELY EXCITED about the opportunity to show Microsoft, other students across the United States and across the world the quality of the VCU entrants.

I'll continue to post on this blog to document the rest of the competition as it unfolds for the student competitors from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Jeff