Conference Information
Presenting at CSCW

Session Length

Technical sessions are each scheduled for 1.5 hours.

Please note that these are only suggested timings. The schedule for each session will be managed by the session chair, who may adjust timings as necessary.

Audio-Visual

It is expected that presenters will bring their own computers for presentations. Each presentation room will be equipped with a computer projector, but computers will not be supplied. Presenters who cannot bring their own computer should contact their session chair to make arrangements.

Overhead (transparency) projectors will not be provided.

Presenters should arrive at least 20 minutes before the start of their session to set up and test the AV.

Session Chairs

Because of the high prices charged by the hotel for computers, and because presenters increasingly seem to prefer to use their laptops, and because of the ubiquity of USB keychain memory stick devices, we've decided THERE WILL BE NO COMPUTERS PROVIDED IN THE TECHNICAL SESSION ROOMS. There will be an LCD projector, and a switch that will allow all presenters to hook up their machines and switch smoothly from one to another as speakers change.

To prepare for this change:

1. Please contact all of your presenters well in advance and see if they plan to bring a laptop, and if not, what medium they plan to use to bring their presentation to the session (e.g., memory stick, CD, download from web, etc.). If they plan to bring one, ask what operating system (Windows, Linux, Mac), and if they have a CD drive and USB port, and a recent version of PowerPoint.
2. If none of your presenters plans to bring a laptop, let us (cscw2004-chairs@acm.org, cscw2004-sv@acm.org) know ASAP, as we will have a couple of spare laptops, and we will arrange to have one at your session.
3. If some of your presenters plan to bring laptops and others do not, we are assuming that people are willing to share their laptops. Please do a quick check to make sure that the laptops that will be present can be used to project presentations in the forms in which they will be arriving (memory stick, CD).
4. Encourage your presenters to have a backup plan in case their laptop, memory stick, or whatever fails to function or gets lost.
5. Finally, please make sure that you and your presenters show up at least 15 minutes before the session starts so everything can be hooked up and tested, files transferred, etc. There will be a student volunteer there to help out.

We have also prepared a single-slide PowerPoint template that we are encouraging session chairs to display at the beginning of sessions. Please download the template, and fill in the appropriate information for your session. The template also provides information about the IRC channel and MessyBoard for each session. The details depend on the session location:

Please load the slide onto the same laptop as the first presenter in your session, and project the slide as the audience enters the room.

• Download the template: cscw2004-session-template.ppt

Templates

If you wish, you may use one of these CSCW 2004 themed PowerPoint templates for your presentation.

Workshops and Tutorials

The AV setup is specific to each Workshop and Tutorial. Please contact the organizer(s) for the specific Workshop and Tutorial if you have an AV question.

Demos & Posters

Each poster will have a mounting area 4 feet wide by 4 feet high. Poster presenters will be provided material with which to mount their poster to the mounting area. Poster authors may hang their posters after 1:00pm Monday in the Williford room.

The demo/poster session on Monday, 8 Nov, will open with a "2 Minute Madness" presentation where presenters will have the opportunity to advertise your poster/demo. The goal in this session will be to pique people's interest so that they will come to talk to you. That means you shouldn't give a complete summary. In fact, you should leave them wanting to hear more!

Each presenter should submit a 2-slide presentation using this template: TwoMinMadnessTemplate.ppt

The first slide is the content slide, and the second slide is a title slide that will show the presenter's name (not all of the authors, just the presenter) and a map of the room and where you are located so people can find you. You only have one content slide to work with! It's not much, but this is intended to draw people in for a deeper discussion.

The content slide can have any content you like: bullet list, images, animation, anything - It just has to fit on one slide. It's not important to keep the CSCW logo, if you want to use that space. If you don't have PowerPoint, just send your content elements to cscw2004-posters@acm.org and we'll fill in the slides.

It's called "2 Minute Madness", but like the 2 slides, you really only get one minute to present! The other minute will be used to tell people where to find you and introduce the next presenter. So practice your one-minute pitch to make sure it fits in one minute.

We need your material by Monday, Nov 1, earlier is better. Really. Not later than that because the poster co-chair is traveling the rest of that week and then we're at CSCW. Please send your 2-slide presentation material and questions to: cscw2004-posters@acm.org. This will be fun!

Language

Although all presentations at CSCW are made using English, CSCW draws participants from all over the world. Keeping a global perspective also means using the English language in a way that effectively communicates across cultural boundaries. For presenters who are not native speakers of English, it is in your best interest to communicate as clearly and effectively as you can in English. If a native English speaker is available, it is a good idea to ask them to listen to your presentation before the conference. For those whose first language is English, it helps to keep in mind that non-native English speakers will be in the audience. It is best to avoid long, complex sentences as well as regional colloquialisms, jokes, or puns that are difficult for someone outside your culture to understand.

Photocopying and Additional Resources

The Hilton has a business center that can provide basic photocopying and other services. If your needs go beyond, there is a Kinkos at 700 S. Wabash, directly west of the Hilton. They have PC and printing facilities within. They have a full line of copying services and a limited assortment of business supplies. That specific Kinkos can be reached at 312.341.0975 or at usa1044@kinkos.com.

Last updated: November 3, 2004