Instructions for authors

We will have a mix of in-person and virtual contributions this year. For most of us, this is the first such “hybrid” conference, so the procedures might be a little different from what you’ve become used to in a fully virtual (or a fully in-person, if anyone still remembers something like that) meeting.

Talk sessions

  • Each session will have a session chair, and a backend tech team.
  • The session chair will introduce the speaker, keep time, and direct the Q&A (see below)
  • In-person speakers will deliver their talks live, in the old-fashioned manner. These will be captured by cameras and microphones in the venue, and streamed live.
    • In-person speakers: please upload a PDF of your slides in advance, as we will use a single computer for the presentations. You will not be able to use your laptop without an extremely compelling reason (in which case please consult with the LOC in advance).
    • Invited in-person speakers, BoF moderators and focus demo presenters may use their own laptops, but please liaise with the tech team in advance to ensure a smooth connection
  • Remote speakers will deliver their talks via Zoom. The tech team will liaise with all remote speakers to ensure a smooth connection.
    • Remote speakers are not required to upload any slides (although they may do so, if they’d like to make them available separately to the audience).
  • Remote participants will view the conference via a live webcast link.

Q&A

  • Q&A is 5 min for invited talks, 3 min for contributed talks
  • We will use Discord chat to take all questions, including those from the physical audience. Yes, even if you are there in person, you will need to submit questions via the Discord app. This way, there is a single question queue for both physical and virtual participants.
  • The session chair will monitor the appropriate Discord channel for submitted questions, and decide which questions to take. The chair will then read out the questions at the end of the talk.
  • The chair can give in-person participants a chance to ask their questions live (“We’ll take a question from Y next, but first a question from X: what about the magnetic field?”), giving Y time to stand up and get to a microphone while the question from X is being answered.

Pre-recorded videos

All invited and contributing speakers (and, in particular, virtual speakers) are strongly encouraged to upload a pre-recorded video of their presentation. The video length should be <=25 min for invited talks, and <=12 min for contributed talks. 

The purpose of the video is threefold:

  • As a plan B, in case your network connection fails at the worst possible time — at least we can play the video instead!
  • Even if you are fully present and/or online, you still have the option of asking us to play the pre-recorded video instead. As the author, you can then start fielding questions on Discord chat directly, while the video is played. We still expect you to be connected and to answer questions live during the Q&A period (5 min for invited talks, 3 min for contributed talks). 
  • Since we will make the video available via the website (unless you have opted out of recording), you may prefer for this to be a pre-edited and cleaned up version.

See also this video guide (courtesy of the ADASS XXX Granada team) for tips on how to record your video.

Poster “lightning talk” videos

Poster authors (both in-person and virtual) are strongly encouraged to submit a 1 minute “lightning talk” video presenting their poster. We will broadcast these videos at various times during the conference. This is your chance to attract attention to your poster, so don’t miss out!

Posters

All poster presenters (in-person or virtual) will be required to upload a 1-page PDF of their poster. The PDF will be made available via the website, and also via the gather.town space (see below). Layout, fonts, etc. are entirely up to the author. You probably want to optimize the poster for on-screen viewing (i.e. use landscape rather than portrait).  Poster boards will be available for in-person poster presenters. Posters can be put up on Sunday, and will stay up for the duration of the conference. The boards will have space for an A0 portrait or A1 landscape poster.

Gather.town

We will use gather.town to create a virtual conference space where virtual and in-person participants can interact live. Poster PDFs will be displayed in this space as well. The gather.town space will be open during coffee breaks, and also during other designated times during the conference. For virtual poster presenters, this is your chance to hang out next to your poster and take live questions.

Uploading your material

Please use our ftp site (ftp.adass2021.ac.za) to upload all your materials: see Upload instructions.

What to upload:

  • Invited and contributed speakers: you are encouraged (but not required — see above) to upload a video of your presentation (25 min and 12 min, respectively), in .mp4 format.
  • Poster presenters: a 1-page PDF of your poster, and (optionally) a 1 min lightning video in .mp4 format.
  • In-person contributing speakers: you are required to upload a PDF of your slides, as we will use a single computer for the presentations.
  • All contributors: a tarball of your proceedings paper. This is required for invited speakers and financial aid recipients, and highly encouraged for everyone else. Please see Proceedings instructions for details about how to prepare your contribution.

Upload deadlines:

  • Draft proceedings submission: 17 Oct
    Please note that we cannot guarantee your paper will be included in the proceedings if you do not upload a draft by this deadline.
  • Poster PDFs and 1-minute videos: 20 Oct *extended deadline*
    Your poster will not be made available on the website, or the gather.town space, if you do not upload a PDF by this deadline.
  • Pre-recorded talk videos: 24 Oct 
  • Slide PDFs (for in-person contributing authors): 24 Oct
  • Final version of proceedings submission: 28 Nov