Gems of Wisdom for Future 218A-ers

1. Machines in the PRL can break. Try to get mechanical parts well in advance of deadlines and keep in mind that the PRL is closed on Sundays (and over Thanksgiving break!). 

2. Interfacing between parts (e.g. multiple mechanical systems, software components, or between software/electrical/mechanical) is the hardest part! Start discussing this early.

3. Maintain up-to-date master CAD, electrical schematics, and state machines. A bit of a pain in the moment, but very helpful in debugging and much easier than updating later down the line!

4. Don't just rely on buying parts online! The PRL and local hardware stores can be a convenient alternative for quick turnaround on new parts

5. Encapsulating software into easily-manageable services with simple behaviors yields a much smoother development process! Sprawling master state machines can make debugging very difficult

6. Implementing a dummy event checker to trigger event transitions with keyboard inputs is so worth the time and can enable significant debugging to take place before key components are integrated