We will be using a professional online conference management tool. Submit your final until the end of the semester (31.03.2008),

The conference management tool allows the management of participants, submissions and reviews. We are using ConfTool Pro version 2.0, it has been gratefully provided and hosted by Harald Weinreich.
 
You need to adhere to the following styleguide when submitting your extended abstract or your final paper as PDF or Word document: Styleguide as PDF, Styleguide as Word.
If you prefer to use LaTEX you are welcome to do so, you can use the following LaTEX file and try to come as close as possible to the styleguides above. You need to submit as PDF.

Please use STiNE, in case of problems you can also show up at the first meeting. Please do check the list of topics, once available, and do prepare to ask questions and to choose one of them in the first meeting.

We will try to give you some additional insight in academic conferences. Therefore this semester's seminar will be held in a conference style:

This is interestingly different from "normal" seminars in several ways:

• You will work in groups and write up an extended abstract (2-5 pages). You can choose your topic from several interesting research topics. Each of the topics or topic areas is advised by one supervisor, who's research interest is centered in this area.
   
• You will receive an introduction into how to search for literature by the librabry. These sessions are mandatory. They will teach you how to find additional litereature and how to "compile" your bibliography. These sessions are provided by the library and have been custom tailored to suit the seminar's requirements. You are allowed to ask questions regarding your quest to find literature for your topic, but do not expect them to find the literature for you.
   
• You will learn how a real conference works behind the scenes: For example your extended abstract needs to be submitted using a conference tool.
  It will give the program committee (Prof. Dr. Posegga [Program Chair], Christopher Alm, Bastian Braun, Martin Johns, Hannah Lee, Daniel Schreckling, Henrich C. Pöhls) an overview and the chance to check the progress of your work (your goals, your methods, your sources, etc.).
   
• Additionally the extended abstract is reviewed in a blinded review process. Blinded means your paper is reviewed by an unknown reviewer, but the reviewer knows that you are the paper's author. You will participate in the review process as reviewers.
  During the review process you get familiar with the other group's work, while reading their extended abstracts. You will rate other group's submissions and provide the authors and the program committee with valueable comments and helpful hints. Again, comments to the program committee as well as the rating will not be given to the authors. So you will get feedback from other participants.
   
• Another benefit of the conference style: You all present your work on the "conference day". Each of you presents a part of your group's work in your group's presentation (about 30 minutes). So you will have one single "event" at the end of the semester (final date will be decided on during the course). This allows you to solely concentrate on interesting, in-depth presentations, rather than listening to two presentations each and every week.
   
• And you have less regular meetings, as the preliminary time-table below shows.

One difference to a regular conference: Normally you would have to work in the comments and suggestions in your camera ready version, which normally needs to be submitted before the presentation. In this seminar the camera-ready version needs to be handed in at the end of this semester.
Eventhough it sounds like more work to all parties (participants & program committee members), we hope this conference-style seminar will be a good preparation and a lot of fun, too.
Ask your fellow students that already took part in previous conference style seminars for their impressions.

Date	Scheduled Task
24.10.	No meeting planned, but you shall look at the provided topics.
31.10.	1st Meeting: Preperation, Group-Building, Questions, ... (face2face)
07.11.	1st Library session (Introduction): 10:15 in the library
14.11.	work on topic
21.11.	2nd Library session (Find further work, detailed questions): 10:15 in the library
28.11.	work on topic
05.12.
12.12.	Deadline: Extendend Abstract-Submission to Conference Tool
19.12.	work on reviews
26.12.	Vacation - Weihnachtsferien
02.01.
09.01.	Deadline: Review Submission to Conference Tool
16.01.	2nd Meeting: Guidance & Feedback (face2face)
23.01	work on presentation
30.01.
06.02.	Conference - Presentations - Day 9:15am -11:00am (face2face)        30 minutes presentation + 10 minutes discussion
	work on final submission
31.03.	Deadline: Camera Ready Paper Submission

For more information please contact Henrich C. Pöhls.