30 Sep - 01 Oct, 2023 Proposal submission closed

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BoFs and Posters for PyCon India 2023

PyCon India provides numerous opportunities to gather, interact, and engage in discussions with fellow Pythonistas. To foster community building, we emphasize interactive and engaging sessions, such as Birds of a Feather (BoF) and Poster sessions.

Submit your proposal through BoF and Poster Submission Page. You can choose the category from the 'Proposal Type' dropdown.

Here is a brief overview of both Categories.

BoF Sessions

Birds of a Feather sessions (or BoFs) are informal gatherings of like-minded individuals who wish to discuss a particular topic without a pre-planned agenda. BoFs provide an inclusive and informal environment where participants can freely share ideas. BoFs can be serious and serve as a great way to bring people from the community together to delve deep into a topic. However, they also offer opportunities to learn while having a lot of fun!

Guidelines

• Duration: Each BoF Session will last for 30 mins.
• Selection: The CFP team will select the BoF sessions.

Moderation

The proposer of the session will serve as the moderator and initiate the session. The moderator's role is to ensure that the discussion is both guided and cohesive while encouraging audience participation. We invite the community to suggest ideas for BoF topics and volunteer as moderators. Please include a brief description of the BoF and potential panelists in your proposal.

Proposal examples

• Discussing the book "Learn Python 3, the Hard Way"
• Application security in the world of LLMs
• PyScript adoption
• Python in Education
• LLMs in Production

Poster Sessions

Posters are graphical summary of projects or ideas. They are usually presented with an A0 size poster, but any creative ways are always welcome. The poster session provides an opportunity to network with the conference attendees and acts as a starting point for further discussions. While talks generally needs to appeal to a wide section of the community, posters can cover niche topics.

PyCon India 2023 will be having a Poster Presentation session on conference days. During the poster presentation session you will be provided with a poster board that can hold an A0 size poster, and a table to place your laptop, for demos. Conference attendees interested in your topic, will stop by, during which you can give them a brief presentation / demo.

Poster Presentation Duration

• Conference Day 1, 30th September - Second Half - Between second and third Keynote
• Conference Day 2, 1st October - Second Half - Between second and third Keynote

FAQ

What is the difference between a talk and a poster?

Talks and posters are different ways of interacting with the conference audience. A topic can be presented as talk, if the intention is to explain the topic in detail. A poster on the other hand, is similar to a lightning talk, in that it quickly introduces the audience to a topic, and acts as trigger point for further discussion.

There are some specific cases where posters are better suited than talks:

• Due to the nature of the poster presentation format, it is better suited for demos, the attendees can interact with the project. This is especially useful for hardware projects.

• Visual presentations always attract the attendees to grasp the core concept of the topic

• If you are first time conference attendee, or a first time speaker at a conference, posters let you engage with the audience without getting intimidated by the large crowd.

• Niche topics that are domain heavy, are better suited as posters. Examples: Python in local language computing, Python in embedded Linux build automation, Python used in scientific study of ailments, etc.

Can I submit both a talk and a poster proposal?

You can submit a talk and poster proposal for the same topic. If your talk does not get selected, you can use the poster session, to introduce your topic, and engage with the audience. Given the limited space and time at the conference, only one of them will get selected though.

What makes a good poster?

First, ensure that you select a good title. Conference attendees will use it to determine which posters to attend. Make sure it brings in audience who will be interested in your poster.

Second, for the poster itself, here are a few tips for creating the poster:

• While textual representation is good, graphical representation will attract more eyes
• Make sure the contents are properly sized and spaced in the poster so that it is viewable from decent distance
• Provoke the reader's curiosity which will open up space for further discussions
• Provide links for the attendees to know more about the topic and connect with you / the community

Do you have sample poster proposals to get started?

You can check the poster proposals from other conferences:

• PyCon India 2019
• PyCon US 2019

Can I do a poster in a local language?

Yes! Since attendees can choose which poster they want to attend, your poster can be in a local language. This makes sense only if there will be sufficient no. of participants who are familiar with the language. This can also be done, if the topic is itself about projects / libraries on regional language computing. Please be noted that the proposal itself needs to be in English, for the reviewers to be able to comprehend your proposal.

Questions?

Ping us on Zulip. In addition to it, you can reach out to CFP volunteers:

• Soumendra Kumar Sahoo, CFP Lead – DM on Zulip
• Dr. Murali, CFP shadow lead - DM on Zulip