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The official Telemark curriculum documentation does not state who created the curriculum .

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Overview

Telemark·Team owned

How to Use the Mechanical Track

Telemark started as a programming curriculum. This track covers the other half of the robot: the structure, the mechanisms, the transmission, and the fabrication work that the code eventually drives.

You do not need to have finished the software track to start here, and you do not need to finish this one before writing code. The two tracks describe the same robot from two directions, and a team is strongest when the people on each side understand enough of the other to have a useful argument.

Open Telemark

Overview

Telemark·Team owned

Official FTC Documentation

Telemark teaches practice. It is not the rules, and it is not the vendor documentation. Both change between seasons, and an inspector, a referee, and a support engineer all work from the official source rather than from us.

This page is the shortcut to those sources. When a decision touches legality, sizing, the control system, or a specific part, read the primary document.

Every rule document is season specific. A manual, a checklist, or a forum answer from a previous season may be wrong this year, and confidently so. Check the season on anything you are about to rely on.

Open Telemark

Overview

Telemark·Team owned

Official FTC Documentation

This page is the shortcut to those sources. When a decision touches legality, sizing, the control system, or a specific part, read the primary document.

Open Telemark

Overview

Telemark·Team owned

Section 1: Choose How You Will Learn and Deploy

You can read every Telemark lesson and run its simulators without installing development software. Local setup is only needed when you are ready to build and deploy code to a physical Robot Controller.

Install Android Studio if you want an early introduction to the full project workflow commonly used by advanced teams. It is not required to begin this curriculum. If installation, Gradle, or SDK configuration becomes a serious problem, stop troubleshooting and continue with [Telemark's built-in simulator](/simulator). You can return to Android Studio later with help from your team.

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Open Telemark

For Telemark Lessons and Simulators

Telemark·Team owned

You need a modern browser, a keyboard, and an internet connection. The simulator runs Java-style FTC code in the browser against simulated hardware. It does not install an app on a Control Hub.

Choose the workflow your team uses:

OnBot Java: Write Java in the Robot Controller's browser editor. Android Studio and a local JDK are not required.
Android Studio (optional head start): Preview the full FTC SDK project, Git, third-party libraries, and code-review tools used by many advanced teams. FIRST currently requires Android Studio Ladybug 2024.2 or later for the official project.
A team-provided web workflow: New browser-based alternatives are emerging. Follow your team's instructions if it uses one, and verify that it can build and deploy against the current FTC SDK.

Sections 2 through 7 document the Android Studio path. They are optional and can be skipped whenever setup gets in the way of learning. Section 8 explains the first OpMode in either environment.

Open Telemark

Overview

Telemark·Team owned

Section 6: Opening the FTC Project in Android Studio

This is part of the optional Android Studio head-start path. If project sync errors turn into a serious blocker, continue in [Telemark's built-in simulator](/simulator) and ask your advanced team for its known-good project and setup instructions later.

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Open Telemark

Overview

Telemark·Team owned

Learning Paths and Time Estimates

Telemark is written as a full start-to-finish curriculum, but most students do not need every unit in order on day one. Use these paths to decide what to study first based on your robot role.

The estimates below assume a student reads the lesson, completes the simulator challenge, and asks at least one debugging question. A fast reader may move quicker; a team building and testing on real hardware should expect extra time for wiring, configuration, and mechanical fixes.

Open Telemark

FIRST Tech Challenge Game Q&A > Game Q&A Summary

FTC Docs·BSD 3-Clause

The Game Q&A tool periodically provides updates to their "one-page summary (https://ftc-qa.firstinspires.org/onepage.html)" of all answered questions. This one-page summary is not guaranteed to contain all questions and answers, and is also not guaranteed to be updated on a regular basis, but it is the best way to obtain a printable format of the questions and answers on the forum.

Open FTC Docs

Creating and Running an Op Mode OBJ > What's an Op Mode?

FTC Docs·BSD 3-Clause

During a typical FIRST Tech Challenge match, a team's robot must perform a variety of tasks to score points. For example, a team might want their robot to follow a white line on the competition floor and then score a game element into a goal autonomously during a match. Teams write programs called OpModes (which stands for "operational modes") to specify the behavior for their robot. These OpModes run on the Robot Controller phone after being selected on the DRIVER STATION device.

Teams who are participating in the FIRST Tech Challenge have a variety of programming tools that they can use to create their own OpModes. This document explains how to use the OnBot Java Programming Tool to write an op mode for a robot.

Open FTC Docs

FIRST Tech Challenge Game Q&A

FTC Docs·BSD 3-Clause

The Game Q&A (https://ftc-qa.firstinspires.org/) is a forum/tool that provides teams an opportunity to receive clarifications from the Game Design Committee about the current season's challenge. Rulings on the Q&A are final and binding, and will be reflected in the Competition Manual.

Open FTC Docs

About the *FIRST* Tech Challenge > Start a *FIRST* Tech Challenge Team

FTC Docs·BSD 3-Clause

FIRST Tech Challenge teams design and build a robot using a reusable kit of parts and compete within a common set of game rules to play an exciting field game and complete the specific season challenge. The robot game changes every season and is always a blast!

Student and adult team members are encouraged to bring any skills they already have, like programming, electronics, metalworking, graphic design, web creation, public speaking, videography, and many more. FIRST Tech Challenge welcomes every student, with or without special skills.

If you are looking to incorporate FIRST into your classroom or after-school programming, learn more about FIRST Class Pack, a flexible implementation option for up to 24 students.

Continue on to learn about the _

Open FTC Docs

Creating Op Modes Blocks

FTC Docs·BSD 3-Clause

During a typical FIRST Tech Challenge match, a team's robot must perform a variety of tasks to score points. For example, a team might want their robot to follow a white line on the competition floor and then score a game element into a goal autonomously during a match. Teams write programs called op modes (which stands for "operational modes") to specify the behavior for their robot. These op modes run on the Robot Controller after being selected on the DRIVER STATION.

Teams who are participating in the FIRST Tech Challenge have a variety of programming tools that they can use to create their own op modes. This section of the wiki explains how to use the Blocks Programming Tool to write an op mode for a robot.

Open FTC Docs

Overview

Telemark·Team owned

Section 3: Installing Android Studio for FTC

Android Studio is optional. Install it now only if you want a head start with the full SDK project, Git collaboration, and third-party libraries commonly used by advanced teams. You do not need it to learn Java, use Telemark's built-in simulator, work in OnBot Java, or follow a compatible browser-based team workflow.

If installation, the setup wizard, Gradle, or the Android SDK causes serious issues, stop here and continue in [Telemark's built-in simulator](/simulator). The simulator remains available for learning and debugging, and you can revisit Android Studio later with an experienced teammate or mentor.

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Open Telemark

FIRST Tech Challenge Game Q&A > How to Ask Questions

FTC Docs·BSD 3-Clause

Once the Game Q&A (https://ftc-qa.firstinspires.org/) opens for the season (usually within 2-3 weeks of the challenge being announced) teams may ask questions using unique accounts provided to teams via their FIRST Dashboard (https://my.firstinspires.org/Dashboard/) accounts. Teams must use these credentials to log into the system, and then may ask questions. Anyone may create a personal account and view or tag questions, but only accounts provided to teams may ask questions.

Obtaining the team credentials for the question-asking team accounts can only be done by the Lead Coach 1 or 2 by selecting "Passwords/Voucher Codes" from the "Payment & Product" drop-down in the "Team Options" column of the team information in the FIRST Dashboard (https://my.firstinspires.org/Dashboard/). The Q&A website credentials for the team will be listed under the "Game Q&A Forum Accounts" section of the resulting webpage.

Open FTC Docs

Overview

Telemark·Team owned

Section 10: Final Environment Setup Check

Before Unit 2, confirm the items for the workflow you chose.

Android Studio is not part of the required checklist. It is only a recommended head start for students preparing to join an advanced team workflow. If local setup caused serious issues, using Telemark's built-in simulator is the correct fallback and you may continue the curriculum.

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[ ] Telemark lessons and simulators open in a supported browser
[ ] I know that the built-in simulator remains available if local setup becomes a serious blocker
[ ] I know which tool my team uses to deploy Java to the Robot Controller
[ ] I understand that browser simulation does not install code on a Control Hub
[ ] My DiagnosticOpMode builds in OnBot Java, Android Studio, or my team's supported workflow
[ ] I can open the Robot Controller's Program and Manage page while connected to its network

If you use Android Studio, also confirm:

[ ] Android Studio Ladybug 2024.2 or a later version supported by the current FTC SDK is installed
[ ] The team repository completes a Gradle sync and build
[ ] The project still uses the SDK's shared build configuration
[ ] Team code remains at the Java compatibility level supplied by the SDK

The exact SDK and Android settings can change between releases. Check the official FTC repository when your team updates its Robot Controller software.

Open Telemark

Control System Introduction > What’s an OpMode?

FTC Docs·BSD 3-Clause

During a typical FIRST Tech Challenge match, a team’s robot has to perform a variety of tasks in an effort to score points. For example, a team might want their robot to follow a white line on the competition floor and then score a game element (such as a ball) into a goal autonomously during a match. Teams write “OpModes” (which stand for “operational modes”) to specify the behavior for their robot.

An OpMode is a computer program that is used to customize the behavior of a competition robot. The Robot Controller can execute a selected OpMode to perform certain tasks during a match.

Teams who are participating in FIRST Tech Challenge have a variety of programming tools that they can use to create their own OpMode. Teams can use a visual (“drag and drop”) programming tool called the Blocks Programming Tool to create their op modes. Teams can also use a text-based Java tool known as the OnBot Java Programming Tool or Google’s Android Studio integrated development environment (also known as an “IDE”) to create their OpModes.

Open FTC Docs