Welcome, Delegate!

 Things are moving along quickly now. We are excited about seeing you soon in ‘Rocky’.  Would you mind reading this carefully and save it in a safe place?

All Papers Now Available On-Line

The schedule page  now provides access to the full text of all papers. These papers are fully indexed so you can search for any word or phrase. (There have been some time changes for one or two papers. You were already notified if your presentation time has been changed.)

Make your conference experience fruitful. We encourage you to read papers in advance of the conference. Then contact authors of papers that interest you using the email address found in their papers.  With two half-hour coffee breaks and 1 ¼ lunch break each day, you can meet lots of new colleagues.  This is by design.  We want you to build collegial friendships that will enable research collaboration. [Coffee breaks and lunch are free of charge for delegates, in case you were not sure.]

 See the page that lists the papers by research area.

Campus Tour and Keepad Workshop on Friday

On Friday 25 June, take a short tour of the campus. It starts at 13:00.

From 14:00-16:00, Keepad is sponsoring a workshop on “Actively Engaging Students in Learning: Using Keepad Feedback to Enhance Classroom Learning.” All delegates (and their guests) are invited to attend. More information about this workshop can be found on the schedule overview page.

 Welcome Reception at Dreamtime Center

The Keepad workshop will end in time for you to make your way to the Welcome Reception from 16:30 to 18:30 at the Dreamtime Center, sponsored by University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Information Studies. Dinner after this is on your own.

Conference Bulletin Board

To access the conference bulletin board use the “Attend the Conference” pull down menu or go to http://bb.insite.nu/ . This is a good way to make contact with other delegates who are bringing family members that would like to find other guests and arrange activities during the conference. We encourage you to check it from time to time.

Paper Presentations Issues

Each presenter should plan on speaking for about 20 minutes. This allows time for questions and gives enough time for all speakers. The session chair will be instructed to ask you to stop when your time is up.

 This may sound like a long time, but we as professors tend to ramble.  The unprepared can spend twenty minutes just on the introduction!  To make the most effective use of your time, present any introductory or background only very briefly and focus on your major points and results. One colleague suggests using the model of a detective story: What is the problem? How are you solving it?  Remember, most of the audience has already read your paper.  They want to know “just the good stuff”.

 Here are the instructions that we will give the session chairs:

Speakers are asked to talk for just 20 minutes to allow for 5-10 minutes for questions.  Your job is to time all presentations and keep the session on schedule.  After a speaker has spoken 10 minutes, please raise the “10 minute warning” sign until the speaker acknowledges it.  Five minutes later, raise the “5 minute warning sign”.   Four minutes after that, raise the “1 minute” sign.  The speaker can now finish within the next 1 minute and have 10 minutes for discussion or up to 6 minutes later, and have five minutes for one question.  Do not let any speaker take up another speakers allotted time as this is quite rude and shows lack of professionalism.

 All sessions are in classrooms that seat 40-45. All rooms will have computers with Windows and MS PowerPoint, data projectors, and overhead projectors. If you have special requirements for your presentation, please let us know now so you will have time to adjust your presentation if the facilities you desire can not be made available. For example, only two presentation rooms have Internet access so we need to know if you require it for your presentation.

 Email Access

Yes, you will have access will be a lab with Internet access for checking email and other computer activities.  You can use web access or plug in your own computer.  It will be open from 8:30 until 17:45 each day.

 Electrical Adaptors for Australian Power Sockets

 If you will be using your own computer, be sure to bring the proper plug adaptors for Australia. Australia uses 220 voltage. A picture of the different types of plug adaptors can been seen at
 http://www.travel-arts.com/page2.htm .  Just remember that the Aussie plugs have tilted prongs.

 We will have only a few adaptors available to borrow.

 We suggest you bring your presentation as a PowerPoint presentation on diskette or CD and/or on overheads. Have a back-up plan in case there are problems with the technology.

Send Links to your Presentation Slides

You most likely will be making PowerPoint or HTML slides for your presentation. Post your presentation online and we will post the link on the schedule. This way you can change and improve your presentation and re-post it to your own website.

Delegate Response Form

If you have not yet filled out the delegate survey, please do so as soon as possible. It provides us with information we need to make your conference experience more enjoyable. Your personalized link is http://1is.us/a.php?id=put your ID here

 Post-Conference Study Mission

Not enough people signed up for the full five-day study mission to run it.  So Renay Buchanan has revised the plan to make an even more exciting and affordable one-day excursion.  It runs immediately after the conference, on Tuesday, June 29.

 Pick up by bus from your hotel

  • Morning, we head to Byfield and Nobb Creek Pottery; here you can find the wonderful pottery.
  • Lunch at Yeppoon (included), a town by the sea.
  • Afternoon at Mount Hay - Gemstone (Thunder Egg) Tourist Park .  Here you can dig for your own Thunder Eggs. Thunder eggs are opalised stones; you can get them made into jewelry or ornaments.
    (Admission and price of the guided tour is included.)
  • Finish the day with cleansing ale at the "Great Western" Pub - owned by the famous Country & Western singer Lee Kerrigan. (included)  (Here is how to dance “The Outback”.)
  • Return to your hotel.

 The payment for the excursion, AUS $80 (~ 50 €), will be collected during the conference.  But you do need to let Renay know to reserve a seat for you since the bus holds only so many.

 In addition, Renay has also offered to provide delegates with information if they wish to arrange their own pre/post conference trips.

 

All the best,

 -eli      Betty

Eli Cohen      Elizabeth Boyd
Conference Organizers