The March of the Penguins - Closed!
The List has been filled - the offer is closed!
[Posted on Behalf of Parallax by John R.]
OOPS! That's something you don't want to hear your dentist say, but everyone once in a while it happens within the hallowed walls of Parallax.
As many of you may already know, when Parallax re-designed parts of the Penguin electronics, we had an "Oops!" moment. The new batch of little guys worked flawlessly. As long as you kept the USB Cable connected. As this tends to make the cute little guy a bit less mobile, and much less stable, this is not a viable situation.
This interesting learning experience for our Engineering Staff, on how to write complete testing specifications, has become an opportunity for you, and for your favorite non-profit/charitable organization!
See this thread: http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?125461-Penguin-Rework-Instructions for more details, but with the assistance of Andrew and WBA Consulting, we have put together a rework kit and instructions to make this batch of Penguins usable.
For more information on these cute guys, see this product page: http://www.parallax.com/StoreSearchResults/tabid/768/txtSearch/penguin/List/0/SortField/4/ProductID/435/Default.aspx, and this thread: http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?97288-Penguin-Resources
Because these birds will require re-work, we can't sell them. But we're not just going to give them away either, so here's the scoop:
You make a donation of at least $100 (US Dollars or equivalent) to a non-profit charity, and Parallax will send you Two (2) count them again, Two (2) Penguins, along with Two (2) rework kits! Even better, you get to pick the colors! (Sort of, see below.) By Charity the idea is to stimulate giving to an organization that helps others. Wed like to also a donation that is not part of a regular donation (i.e. your Church offerings or other memberships dont count). There is an obvious amount of trust here, ahd while were asking for some type of proof, we certainly are not going to be doing any auditing. Well also rely on your judgment for things like the Optimists Club or other service organizations. If your local group or chapter is helping run a food pantry, or something like that, they count, if they are more involved with civic projects like parks and swing sets, wed like you to select something more in tune with helping those less fortunate.
Why Two (2)? Because the rework involves surface mount soldering in some tight quarters, and after you've helped out your favorite non-profit charity, Parallax wants to give you more than a fair chance at having a working Penguin. If you're good, you'll end up with Two (2) Working Penguins!
So now you're saying to yourself, "OK, Count me in!" How do I get my Two (2) birds from the bush into my hand? There are five (5) simple steps:
Step 1: Make a donation to your favorite non-profit charity, or use a past onc that's been made sometime after January 1, 2011.
Step 2: Get yourself an electronic copy of the receipt, canceled check, or a partial copy of your credit card statement showing the donation. Paper does not work. It won't go through the SMTP servers very well.
Step 3: Copy the form below into an e-mail message, and fill out he form. (Insert an "X" between the square brackets to indicate choices.
Step 4: Attach the electronic copy of your "proof of donation" to the e-mail.
Step 5: Send the e-mail to: penguins@raffy.us Do not attempt to send paper, and do not send your request to any other e-mail address. Do not phone Parallax. Do not stop by Parallax (at least for this offer). The only way to get in on this is by making a donation, and sending electronic information to penguins@raffy.us!
Were starting with a total of 187 birds in the following colors:
After the maximum number of submissions are received (plus a few extra "just in case"), the e-mail address will be disabled. This means that if you get the dreaded "Delivery Error: no such address", you're too late. We will notify any submitters that get in before we turn off the address that they were too late. We'll also post a follow up message to this thread that the offer has been closed.
John R. from our forums here (AKA Raffy, AKA the Unofficial Video Guy for the Unofficial Propeller Expos, AKA "me") will put the information in a spread sheet for Parallax so that all they have to do is print labels and deliver them to the post office.
We only have a fixed number of each color, so color selection will be handled as follows. We've done things this way so that we can maximize the number of donators that get at least one Penguin in the color of their choice.
Based on the order the e-mails ARRIVE (not responsible for quirks or delays with the SMTP daemons) the first pass of color assignments will assign the color of Penguin #1 based on user color priority and available birds.
Pass number two, again, in order received, will work on matching colors for those who indicated that they wanted a matched set. If, by the time we get to your name on this pass, we cannot match the color of your first Penguin, we'll swap it (the first Penguin) for a color that we can match (based on your priorities). It may be impossible to provide you with a matched pair, but we'll do our best.
Pass number three will fill in the rest, based on the order the e-mails arrived, and the priority you indicated for your colors.
Some important Notes:
Parallax will be shipping out the Penguins via USPS, both domestic and international. This means that you may use a PO Box for your address. As Parallax is picking up the tab on the shipping, and does not have a way to run this through the normal systems, this is the only shipping option available.
The color(s) you get, are the color(s) you get. We'll do our best to get you your favorite color(s), but we only have a fixed set of birds to work with.
If you mess up the re-work on both Penguins, there isnt a lot that we can do. The support we can provide is limited, and there certainly will not be any parts available, and we will not be accepting any returns.
If the process of getting submissions goes slower than anticipated, we'll post an update on the number of submissions, and where we're at with available colors.
>8 Beginning of Form 8<
[Posted on Behalf of Parallax by John R.]
OOPS! That's something you don't want to hear your dentist say, but everyone once in a while it happens within the hallowed walls of Parallax.
As many of you may already know, when Parallax re-designed parts of the Penguin electronics, we had an "Oops!" moment. The new batch of little guys worked flawlessly. As long as you kept the USB Cable connected. As this tends to make the cute little guy a bit less mobile, and much less stable, this is not a viable situation.
This interesting learning experience for our Engineering Staff, on how to write complete testing specifications, has become an opportunity for you, and for your favorite non-profit/charitable organization!
See this thread: http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?125461-Penguin-Rework-Instructions for more details, but with the assistance of Andrew and WBA Consulting, we have put together a rework kit and instructions to make this batch of Penguins usable.
For more information on these cute guys, see this product page: http://www.parallax.com/StoreSearchResults/tabid/768/txtSearch/penguin/List/0/SortField/4/ProductID/435/Default.aspx, and this thread: http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?97288-Penguin-Resources
Because these birds will require re-work, we can't sell them. But we're not just going to give them away either, so here's the scoop:
You make a donation of at least $100 (US Dollars or equivalent) to a non-profit charity, and Parallax will send you Two (2) count them again, Two (2) Penguins, along with Two (2) rework kits! Even better, you get to pick the colors! (Sort of, see below.) By Charity the idea is to stimulate giving to an organization that helps others. Wed like to also a donation that is not part of a regular donation (i.e. your Church offerings or other memberships dont count). There is an obvious amount of trust here, ahd while were asking for some type of proof, we certainly are not going to be doing any auditing. Well also rely on your judgment for things like the Optimists Club or other service organizations. If your local group or chapter is helping run a food pantry, or something like that, they count, if they are more involved with civic projects like parks and swing sets, wed like you to select something more in tune with helping those less fortunate.
Why Two (2)? Because the rework involves surface mount soldering in some tight quarters, and after you've helped out your favorite non-profit charity, Parallax wants to give you more than a fair chance at having a working Penguin. If you're good, you'll end up with Two (2) Working Penguins!
So now you're saying to yourself, "OK, Count me in!" How do I get my Two (2) birds from the bush into my hand? There are five (5) simple steps:
Step 1: Make a donation to your favorite non-profit charity, or use a past onc that's been made sometime after January 1, 2011.
Step 2: Get yourself an electronic copy of the receipt, canceled check, or a partial copy of your credit card statement showing the donation. Paper does not work. It won't go through the SMTP servers very well.
Step 3: Copy the form below into an e-mail message, and fill out he form. (Insert an "X" between the square brackets to indicate choices.
Step 4: Attach the electronic copy of your "proof of donation" to the e-mail.
Step 5: Send the e-mail to: penguins@raffy.us Do not attempt to send paper, and do not send your request to any other e-mail address. Do not phone Parallax. Do not stop by Parallax (at least for this offer). The only way to get in on this is by making a donation, and sending electronic information to penguins@raffy.us!
Were starting with a total of 187 birds in the following colors:
- 40 Red
- 63 Black
- 41 Blue
- 43 Clear/Aluminum (not see through clear, but clear anodizing over the un-feathered aluminum)
After the maximum number of submissions are received (plus a few extra "just in case"), the e-mail address will be disabled. This means that if you get the dreaded "Delivery Error: no such address", you're too late. We will notify any submitters that get in before we turn off the address that they were too late. We'll also post a follow up message to this thread that the offer has been closed.
John R. from our forums here (AKA Raffy, AKA the Unofficial Video Guy for the Unofficial Propeller Expos, AKA "me") will put the information in a spread sheet for Parallax so that all they have to do is print labels and deliver them to the post office.
We only have a fixed number of each color, so color selection will be handled as follows. We've done things this way so that we can maximize the number of donators that get at least one Penguin in the color of their choice.
Based on the order the e-mails ARRIVE (not responsible for quirks or delays with the SMTP daemons) the first pass of color assignments will assign the color of Penguin #1 based on user color priority and available birds.
Pass number two, again, in order received, will work on matching colors for those who indicated that they wanted a matched set. If, by the time we get to your name on this pass, we cannot match the color of your first Penguin, we'll swap it (the first Penguin) for a color that we can match (based on your priorities). It may be impossible to provide you with a matched pair, but we'll do our best.
Pass number three will fill in the rest, based on the order the e-mails arrived, and the priority you indicated for your colors.
Some important Notes:
Parallax will be shipping out the Penguins via USPS, both domestic and international. This means that you may use a PO Box for your address. As Parallax is picking up the tab on the shipping, and does not have a way to run this through the normal systems, this is the only shipping option available.
The color(s) you get, are the color(s) you get. We'll do our best to get you your favorite color(s), but we only have a fixed set of birds to work with.
If you mess up the re-work on both Penguins, there isnt a lot that we can do. The support we can provide is limited, and there certainly will not be any parts available, and we will not be accepting any returns.
If the process of getting submissions goes slower than anticipated, we'll post an update on the number of submissions, and where we're at with available colors.
>8 Beginning of Form 8<
Name:
Ship To Address:
Penguin Color Match Preference:
[ ] Match
[ ] Different
[ ] Doesn't Matter
Penguin Number 1 Color Preference (Rank 1 to 4)
[ ] Red
[ ] Blue
[ ] Black
[ ] Clear/Aluminum
[ ] Doesn't Matter
Penguin Number 2 Color Preference (Rank 1 to 4)
[ ] Red
[ ] Blue
[ ] Black
[ ] Clear/Aluminum
[ ] Doesn't Matter
Note: Match/Different has priority over Color Number 1.
In other words, if you select "Match" (or Different) and we don't have a second Penguin
in the color you have for Penguin Number 1 when we come back to you, we'll change
Penguin number 1 so that we can get you matching (or different) colored penguins.
Non-Profit Name:
Donation amount:
Either attach an electronic copy of a receipt, or include a copy of an e-mail
receipt (as an attachment or include below).
Comments
The $100 donation you will make should benefit a charity more than a non-profit. Charity organizations that feed, cloth and house others are a great choice, domestic or overseas. Maybe an organization that provides a specific kind of medical help is a good idea, too. Or one that serves the elderly. We're giving you a bit of latitude here, but asking that you focus on organizations that really help those who need it. I don't think JohnR is going to evaluate all of your donation choices -- we trust you!
And we'll send the penguins out for free. The rework is simple in nature, but serious in precision. That's why you get two birds in the hand.
When we're done you will have raised $10,000 for charity.
Ken Gracey
Parallax Inc.
In talking with Ken, the preference was to have single donation. Part of the scoop, was the sincere hope that we'd be helping people that over and above what we're already doing. Kind of a "instead of sending $100 to Parallax to buy a Penguin, give to a charity".
The key thing there in my mind is the "over and above". I initially had the "back date" at December 1, and given the "over and above" philosophy, I changed that to Jan 1 because so many people give just before the holidays anyway.
Maybe Ken will have a different take on things, and we can adapt.
This whole thing (deciding what qualifies and doesn't) is a dicey thing. I'm not going to pick these things apart. We're relying on this community to come through for charity, and use their own judgment. There is a high level of trust we're placing on the forum members.
Having said all that, the guiding thoughts should be:
- Give to a charity that helps others that are less fortunate.
- The donation should be something above and beyond what you would normally have given.
When all is said and done, Let's keep it simple. Submit what you think falls into the above two criteria. Unless I see something like "Joe's Hookah Club", we're good!I have a donation in mind, but it looks like I can't donate online and I'm not sure when I'd get the receipt. I'd hate to miss out because of snail mail.
Sorry, but this (reservations) just isn't something we're not in a position to do. We need to keep things simple on our end. If it makes you feel any better, so far, as of 9:09 AM CST, on January 25th, we only have 3 submissions.
I figured that would be the case
Edit: And the email has been sent. Thanks for handling this, John.
Thanks for doing this John. Seems like a win, win, win situation.
Paul
I'm glad to help out here!
To be honest, this has so far been WAY to easy. There have only been 6 submissions so far. We were anticipating a more "vigerous" response. I was expecting to be sending Ken a completed list of shipping addresses by, or over the weekend.
So a couple questions:
- Have we made this too complex?
- Is it just taking time to make donations and get submissions together?
- Are you having problems convincing your "Financial Advisor" that this is something you should do?
- Was there really this little demand for these little guys?
I know this group cares about helping people. I can't believe that asking for a $100 donation to a charity is the problem. That's way cheaper than buying even just one of these Penguins, and you have the chance for two!This is a great opportunity for everyone involved:
- Your favorite charity gets a boost!
- You get two (2) Penguins and two (2) rework kits.
- Ken Gracey gets his office space back!
- You get to amaze your family, friends and relatives with this cute little guy, and his/her amazing capabilities.
If there is something we can do to make this easier, please let me know!Maybe there should be a deadline for a "first round" of distribution. Make it long enough to allow people to make the appropriate/required arrangements for donating but not so long that nobody sees anything for months (if things are really going to go slowly). This might encourage people who are on the edge or just waiting to go ahead and participate now.
In the end, if there just aren't enough people interested, I'm probably interested in picking up some more (for an additional donation, of course).
I expect some could also be raffled off pretty easily at the UPEs.
Also, maybe something needs to be done to draw more attention to this thread. There may be people who have been waiting to find out what's going to happen but haven't noticed this yet.
We're adding a link to this thread from the Parallax.com home page for awhile. That should help stir up a bit more interest as well.
Cheers, Jen J.
Thanks for your effort, John!
If response remains low would you entertain the idea of those of us who have made a donation towards 2 repairs make a 2nd donation towards 2 more repairs? I have other charities locally that I'd like to contribute to and I will like the challenge of repair process.
Paul
Humanoido is the Penguin's Patron Saint, and his tireless efforts in programming and promoting the Penguin are legendary. Check out his many Youtube videos showing Penguin moves:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9owSIXhh_Mo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Duxpxu4Bhs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQwxJN6f-oQ
Great promo, BTW. Parallax raises the bar AGAIN!
As far as questions about multiple submissions, and shipping out before we're all "sold out", let's see how things go through the weekend, and I'll get with Ken on Monday or Tuesday.
As a heads up: I can keep half an eye on things during the work day, and have tried to keep up with any questions. Tomorrow night I have 4H robots, so will appear "missing in action". Saturday morning and into the afternoon, I get to help my cousin move, and again, will be "away from the keyboard". (side note: Late January is not a very nice time to move in Wisconsin.)
As it stand right now, supply is good on all colors. As the list starts to fill up, I'll post an update on numbers (and colors) as I'm able.
Thanks to everyone for supporting this effort, and a special thank you to Jen for giving us some space on the home page!
To everyone who hasn't jumped on the bandwagon. Walking robots are a lot of fun, and this is a way to get one cheaply, while help somebody else out too!
I'll admit to being nervous about the rework. I've read through the fix instructions and conceptually its pretty simple. Really the only hitch is that we're dealing with surface mount parts. So for my upcoming role as robo-avian vet, I'm going to get a new fine tip for my soldering iron. I already have a fresh blade in my X-acto knife and a lighted magnifying glass.
But even if I mess up the mechanical components could be used with a home brew brain.
Do you like the Parallax Penguin Robots? I can't tell :-)
- Thanks for helping hype these guys up, they have earned it!
I second that emotion!