Component Design and Development Competition
Eligibility |
Placement Scoring |
Registration |
Schedule |
Scoring and Advancing |
Prizes |
Conditions of Participation
Overview of the Tournament
No purchase necessary to enter or win. The tournament is void where prohibited.
The 2005 TopCoder Collegiate Challenge ("TCCC") Component Design and Development Competition ("CDDC") will take place between January 4, 2005 and March 11, 2005. It will consist of two competitions - the design competition and the development competition. Each competition will consist of four (4) weeks of online competition and one (1) onsite final round, being the Championship round. The prize purse for this tournament is $90,000 in cash, with up to $56,900 being awarded for the design competition and up to $33,100 for the development competition. The four (4) competitors in each competition with the highest cumulative placement scores after the online rounds of competition will advance to the onsite Championship round, being held at the Santa Clara Marriott in Santa Clara, CA, USA on March 10 and 11, 2005.
Eligibility
TopCoder members meeting the following eligibility criteria are eligible to compete in the CDDC:
- Must be at least 18 years of age (as of January 4, 2005); AND
- Must be matriculated full-time at an accredited college or university; AND
- If not a US resident, must be living in, and participating from, your country of residence; AND
- Must not have been permanently suspended from participating in TopCoder Component projects.
TopCoder members who are 18 years of age or older as of January 4, 2005 are eligible to win cash prizes, unless otherwise prohibited. The TopCoder Collegiate Challenge is void in the Quebec province of Canada, and elsewhere where prohibited by applicable law. Cash prizes will not be paid to residents of Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Sudan, or Syria.
Those members who are eligible to compete in both the Algorithm Competition of the TCCC and in the CDDC will be permitted to participate in both. However, if a member advances as a finalist in both the Algorithm Competition and the CDDC, then the member must choose which competition he/she will compete in as an onsite finalist. Members will be allowed to compete in both the design and development competitions of the CDDC. However, if one member participates in both the design and development competitions AND qualifies as one of the finalists in each, then the member will only be permitted to advance to the Championship round in one of the competitions. The following criteria will be used to determine which competition the member will advance to:
- The member will advance to the competition in which he/she achieved a higher cumulative score. (Details of how the cumulative score is calculated are provided below.)
- If the member's cumulative placement score is the same for both competitions, then the member will choose the competition in which he/she will compete.
Employees of TopCoder, Inc. and of all official tournament sponsors, regardless of commitment date as sponsor, including any companies involved in the production (including prize suppliers), implementation and distribution of this tournament and their advertising or promotion agencies, parent companies, service providers, agents, officers, subsidiaries or affiliates, or any other persons or entities directly associated with the tournament and members of the immediate families and/or persons living in the same household as such persons, are ineligible to enter the tournament. If a competitor's employer signs up as an official sponsor of the tournament after December 20, 2004, then that competitor will be disqualified from participating further in the tournament. TopCoder members who are performing internships for any official tournament sponsor between December 20, 2004 and March 11, 2005 are also ineligible to compete.
Placement Scoring
Scoring in the CDDC is determined based on the placement for each submission. Placement is determined based on the score awarded for a particular component. For example, if 3 submissions were received for a component and the scores were 93, 89, and 71, the member receiving the score of 93 would be in 1st place and would receive 10 points. Note that only those registered for the tournament are considered when determining place and placement points. In order to receive placement points, a submission must pass the minimum component score of 70. Placement scoring is as follows:
The placement points outlined are for both Level One and Level Two components.
Registration
Registration for the 2005 TopCoder Collegiate Challenge Component Competition will open at 9:00AM EST on Monday, December 20, 2005, and will close at 6:00PM EST on Monday, January 3, 2004.
Schedule
Both the design and development competitions will have four (4) weeks of online competition and one (1) onsite Championship round. Each contestant participating in an online round must submit his/her design and/or development submission for components by the submission deadline as scheduled.
TopCoder members from around the world may be participating in the online rounds, but all start times, registration deadlines and submission deadlines will be communicated as Eastern Standard Time, so contestants in different time zones must adjust accordingly.
Scoring and Advancing
During each week of competition, eligible competitors can submit design and development solutions for at least one eligible component by the submission deadline. Submissions will be scored by the TopCoder Review Boards and will be subject to final review and appeal in the same manner as standard component design and development submissions. Scoring of each submission by the TopCoder Review Boards is based on the criteria outlined in the
Development Review Scorecard for the Development Contest or the criteria outlined in the
Design Review Scorecard for the Design Contest. Note that the scorecards to be used for the CDDC are the ones that are in effect as of January 4, 2005. ALL SUBMISSIONS MUST BE RECEIVED ACCORDING TO THE SUBMISSION DEADLINE TO BE CONSIDERED A VIABLE ENTRY. THERE WILL BE NO EXCEPTIONS. There will be no elimination of contestants during the online competition.
Up to the three (3) highest individual placement scores that each contestant receives for his/her submissions throughout the four (4) weeks of competition will be added together for a cumulative placement score. The four (4) competitors in each competition with the highest cumulative positive (i.e., greater than zero) placement score will advance to the onsite Championship round.
In the event of a tie of cumulative placement score among the advancers to the Championship round, the tie will be resolved in the following manner:
- Highest cumulative component score of the lesser number of components used to develop the cumulative placement score for the tied competitors.
- If a tie still remains, then the highest individual component score of the lesser number of components used to develop the cumulative placement score for the tied competitors.
- If a tie still remains, then all tied contestants will advance to the online Championship round.
Example:
Contestant #1 submits three components in the design competition, earning the following component and placement scores:
Component #1 - score 88.45; placement 2; placement score 7
Component #2 - score 76.33; placement 3; placement score 5
Component #3 - score 82.89; placement 3; placement score 5
Cumulative placement score: 7 + 5 + 5 = 17
Contestant #2 submits two components in the design competition, earning the following component and placement scores:
Component #1 - score 92.56; placement 1; placement score 10
Component #2 - score 75.83; placement 2; placement score 7
Cumulative placement score: 10 + 7 = 17
To determine who advances to Championship round, look at the highest cumulative component score of the lesser number of components used to develop the cumulative placement score for the tied competitors.
Contestant #1: 88.45 + 82.89 = 171.34
Contestant #2: 92.56 + 75.83 = 168.39
Contestant #1 would advance to the Championship round.
Onsite Championship round
The four (4) advancers in each competition from the four (4) weeks of online competition will travel to the Santa Clara Marriott on Tuesday, March 8 or Wednesday, March 9, 2005 to compete in a final competitive stage of the tournament being held on Thursday, March 10, 2005. All contestants must arrive at the Santa Clara Marriott no later than 4:00 PM PST on Wednesday, March 9, 2005. If a contestant is unable to attend the onsite round, he/she will forfeit his/her eligibility to receive any prizes awarded to onsite finalists, and his/her spot in the tournament will be given to the competitor with the next highest cumulative placement score from the online competition.
All CDDC finalists must confirm that they can travel to the onsite finals by February 21, 2005.
TopCoder will provide travel arrangements for each competitor up to a cost of $1,000 per person. (That is, if a contestant's airfare is greater than $1,000, the contestant will be responsible for the difference between the cost of the airfare and $1,000.) TopCoder will provide ground transportation to and from the airport, as well as accommodations and certain meals for each contestant. All other expenses are the responsibility of the contestant. TopCoder will not provide travel or lodging accommodations for competitor guests at the 2005 TCCC.
The Championship round will be a single round of four (4) members in each competition. Two winners will be crowned, one Design Champion and one Development Champion. Each champion will be the member who receives the highest score for his/her final submission in each competition.
Championship Tiebreaker: In the event of a tie in the Championship round, the tie will be resolved in the following manner (in order):
- By cumulative placement score as of the end of the four (4) weeks of online competition (highest cumulative placement score wins).
- If a tie still remains, then by highest cumulative component score of the lesser number of components used to develop the cumulative placement score for the tied competitors.
- If a tie still remains, then the prize money will be distributed equally among the tied members.
About the Prizes
All contestants who submit components that pass screening during at least one week of online competition will receive a prize. The tournament will award $90,000 in cash prizes, with up to $56,900 being awarded for the design competition and up to $33,100 for the development competition. Any and all applicable taxes on prizes are the sole responsibility of the prizewinner. Prizes will be distributed as follows:
In order for onsite finalists to receive their onsite cash prize, they must first complete all TCCC-related work for all Online rounds and the Championship round, including final fixes.
Conditions of Participation
By participating in the tournament, you agree to be bound by these rules and to all decisions of TopCoder, which are final, binding and conclusive in all matters. Also, by participating in this tournament, you consent to providing certain information to Yahoo! for recruiting purposes. Such information shall include the information contained in your TopCoder member profile and your competition statistics.
Contestants must not cheat. All ideas for any code solution submitted, including but not limited to design ideas and source code, must be the contestant's alone.
All decisions relating to the viability of submissions, the ranking of submissions and all other matters pertaining to the tournament shall be within the sole discretion of TopCoder or its designee and shall be final and binding in all respects.
As a condition of participation in the tournament, all information provided by you in your TopCoder member profile must be comprehensive, accurate and up-to-date. TopCoder may require you to complete an additional registration form to register for the tournament. In order to be eligible to participate in the tournament, you must have completed any and all registration forms required by TopCoder.
As a condition of winning and redeeming a cash prize, finalists will be required to return by Monday, February 21, 2005 a completed (i) notarized Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability and Publicity Release, (ii) competitor questionnaire (the questions and responses will be published in the 2005 TopCoder Collegiate Challenge Program), (iii) travel form, and (iv) IRS Form W-9, W-8BEN or W-8ECI, as appropriate, if one is not already on file with TopCoder. In completing the Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability and Publicity Release, a winner (a) confirms his/her eligibility, (b) represents and warrants that he/she has not cheated; that the idea for the design and/or code submitted is his/hers alone, (c) verifies the accuracy of the demographic information submitted to, and contained in, the TopCoder member database, (d) authorizes TopCoder to publicize the tournament's results, (e) agrees to sign any applicable forms required by tax authorities, (f) assigns to TopCoder all rights to all information submitted during the tournament (including rights to designs, source code and other executables), and (g) releases TopCoder from liability arising out of any prize won. TopCoder requires contestants to complete the Form W-9, W-8BEN or W-8ECI for tax reporting purposes. If prize notification is returned as undeliverable, or if the winner fails to return the Affidavit, or the appropriate tax form, the winner will be disqualified and the prize money won by the disqualified winner will be forfeited. Providing false information in the registration process or in the required forms described in this paragraph will disqualify a winner.
By participating in a tournament and redeeming a prize, a winner releases and agrees to hold harmless TopCoder, its affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising and promotion agencies, sponsors, and prize suppliers, and all of their respective directors, officers, employees, representatives and agents, from and against any and all liability for any loss, property damage or damage to person, including without limitation, death and injury, due in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, from or arising out of participation in this tournament, or participation in any tournament-related activity, or the receipt, use or misuse of a prize. TopCoder specifically disclaims all liability associated with, and makes no warranties with regard to, any prize given.
In addition, all prizewinners agree to cooperate with TopCoder's publicity efforts, without further compensation. This includes the agreement to use their name, handle, address (city and state) and likeness for publicity purposes, where legal, for this or similar future tournaments, and to use the statements made by, or attributed to, the winners relating to TopCoder and any and all rights to said use, without further compensation. Furthermore, all prizewinners agree to promptly notify TopCoder if a third-party, including any tournament sponsor, contacts the prizewinner regarding employment opportunities and/or media interest as a result of the prizewinner's participation in the tournament.
TopCoder reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to revoke any and all privileges associated with competing in this tournament, and to take any other action it deems appropriate, for no reason or any reason whatsoever, including if TopCoder suspects competitors of cheating, tampering with the entry process, the operation of the Web site, or the tournament process, or otherwise being in violation of the rules. TopCoder reserves the right to cancel, terminate or modify the tournament if it is not capable of completion as planned for any reason, including infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention or technical failures of any sort.
Other
The tournament is void in whole or in part where prohibited by law.
A list of tournament winners by coder handles will be available on the web site at
http://www.topcoder.com/tc, and will be displayed for at least 3 months after the end of the tournament.
This tournament is brought to you by TopCoder, Inc. (
http://www.topcoder.com/) 703 Hebron Avenue (now 95 Glastonbury Blvd), Glastonbury, CT 06033.
