Conference Management
Global J. of Engng. Educ., Vol.8, No.2 Published in Australia
© 2004 UICEE
The Development of Online Conference Management Tools as a Student Project*
Özdemir Göl Andrew Nafalski Thien D. Nguyen Quang T. Tran
University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes Blvd, Mawson Lakes, Adelaide, SA 5095, Australia
In this article, the authors describe online conference management tools that have been developed at the University of South Australia (UniSA), Adelaide, Australia, by students as their final year electrical and information engineering design project. These tools have been utilised to manage an international conference. The Web tools allow a host of tasks to be handled efficiently. These tasks cover the whole range of conference related business, including the issuing of call-for-papers and providing information about the conference, methods of contacting the conference organisers, registrations of interest, online submissions of abstracts (and, later on, full papers) and online reviewing of contributions. The project has satisfied a number of criteria in terms of suitability for engendering graduate qualities in senior engineering students.
INTRODUCTION
The advent of Internet-based online systems has revolutionised the management of almost every conceivable form of human activity, ranging from making purchases to handling finances. Indeed, the organisation of professional conferences has been no exception. Gone are the days for calls-for-papers, paper submissions, and registration documents that need to be printed and distributed at substantial cost by regular post. All this, and more, can now be routinely achieved online. It may not be generally recognised how complex a task organising a conference is. Many logistics problems can be solved in a sensitive way by avoiding bottlenecks and inadvertent friction points. If online resources are to be utilised, this requires the mastery of sophisticated skills ranging from systematic thinking to multifaceted
© 2004 UICEE
The Development of Online Conference Management Tools as a Student Project*
Özdemir Göl Andrew Nafalski Thien D. Nguyen Quang T. Tran
University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes Blvd, Mawson Lakes, Adelaide, SA 5095, Australia
In this article, the authors describe online conference management tools that have been developed at the University of South Australia (UniSA), Adelaide, Australia, by students as their final year electrical and information engineering design project. These tools have been utilised to manage an international conference. The Web tools allow a host of tasks to be handled efficiently. These tasks cover the whole range of conference related business, including the issuing of call-for-papers and providing information about the conference, methods of contacting the conference organisers, registrations of interest, online submissions of abstracts (and, later on, full papers) and online reviewing of contributions. The project has satisfied a number of criteria in terms of suitability for engendering graduate qualities in senior engineering students.
INTRODUCTION
The advent of Internet-based online systems has revolutionised the management of almost every conceivable form of human activity, ranging from making purchases to handling finances. Indeed, the organisation of professional conferences has been no exception. Gone are the days for calls-for-papers, paper submissions, and registration documents that need to be printed and distributed at substantial cost by regular post. All this, and more, can now be routinely achieved online. It may not be generally recognised how complex a task organising a conference is. Many logistics problems can be solved in a sensitive way by avoiding bottlenecks and inadvertent friction points. If online resources are to be utilised, this requires the mastery of sophisticated skills ranging from systematic thinking to multifaceted
References: 1. Sommerville, I., Software Engineering (6th edn). Reading: Addison Wesley (2001). 2. Sklar, J., Principles of Web Design. Canada: Course Technology (2000). 3. Tran, Q. and Nguyen, T., Internet-based Conference Management. Final Year Design Project Report, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia (2003). 4. International Conference on Electrical Machines in Australia (ICEMA), University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia (2004), http://www.unisa.edu.au/icema/ 5. University of South Australia, Graduate Qualities (2004), http://www.unisanet.unisa.edu.au/ gradquals/staffIndex.htm BIOGRAPHIES Özdemir Göl has had extensive experience as an engineering educator in addition to his substantial industrial experience. His academic career has included appointments in electrical engineering at universities in Turkey and 188 Ö. Göl et al Quang Thai Tran received his Bachelor of Engineering in Computer Systems Engineering in 2004 from the University of South Australia (UniSA), Adelaide, Australia. Since graduation, he has worked as an Information Technologist at the UniSA. He is now studying for his MBA degree at the UniSA in Information and Communications Technology Management. In 1989, Thien Dug Nguyen arrived from Vietnam in Adelaide, Australia, where he continued with his education. He graduated in 2004 from the University of South Australia (UniSA), Adelaide, Austalia, with a Bachelor of Engineering degree, specialising in the field of Computer Systems Engineering.