Abstract Submission FAQ Sheet

 GENERAL ABSTRACT FAQ

Q. Where and how do I submit an abstract?
A.  All abstracts must be submitted electronically on the ASAS Midwestern Section/ADSA Midwest Branch Meeting Web Site:  http://adsa.asas.org/midwest/2007

Q. What is the deadline for General abstracts?
A. 11:59 p.m. Central Daylight Time, Wednesday, October 25. 2006.

Q.  What is the deadline for Invited Abstracts?
A.  11:59 p.m. Central Daylight Time, Wednesday, October 25, 2006.

Q.  How do I edit the abstract after the submission deadline?
A.  Edits after the submission deadline must be approved by the section chair.

Q.  Where do I find the name of a program section chair?
A.  A list of program section chairs with contact information can be found on the web site: http://adsa.asas.org/midwest/2007

Q.  When will I know the day and time of my presentation?
A.  As soon as the program is finalized, the program will be posted to the web site http://adsa.asas.org/midwest/2007.  An automatic email will be sent to the corresponding author as abstracts are accepted.  Another email will be sent when the abstract is scheduled for presentation.

 ABSTRACT CONTENT FAQ

Q. Will I be able to submit my abstract in a language other than English?
A. No, we only accept abstracts that are written in English.

Q. What should I do if I have more than fifteen authors for the abstract?
A.  Put in 15 authors and submit your abstract. Print your preview page; write in the authors that need inserted and where they should be inserted. Write the tracking number on the preview sheet and fax to headquarters (217-398-4119) with a cover sheet stating what needs to be done.

Q. What should I do if I have more than fifteen institutions or companies for the abstract?
A.  Put in 15 institutions/companies and submit your abstract. Print your preview page; write in the authors that need inserted and where they should be inserted. Write the tracking number on the preview sheet and fax to headquarters (217-398-4119) with a cover sheet stating what needs to be done.

Q.  How do I check for 2300 keystrokes?
A.  Your word processor has a word count feature where you can check the character and space count before inserting special coding.

Q.  What is included in 2300 keystrokes?
A.  Title, authors, institutions, body, key words and table, if included, counts toward the 2300 keystrokes.

Q.  Is the special coding included in the 2300 keystrokes?
A.  No, special coding is not included in the keystroke count.

Q.  The guidelines state abstracts of more that 2300 keystrokes (characters and spaces) will be rejected.  Will my abstract be rejected if over the 2300 keystrokes?
A.  When you hit the submit button, you will get a message stating if you have information missing or your abstract exceeds the limit.  You will have the option to adjust your keystrokes and add missing information at that time.

TELL ME MORE ABOUT THE GRADUATE COMPETITION OPTIONS

Competition and Award Papers and Posters: Remember, the Graduate Competition has been divided into M.S. and Ph.D. student divisions, and includes both oral and poster sessions.  Abstracts will be presented in separate sessions, one oral and one poster session for the M.S. division and one oral and one poster session for the Ph.D. division. Each institution may submit the research papers of two (2) M.S. and two (2) Ph.D. graduate students for each of the competitions.  If two (2) student papers are submitted in a division (M.S. oral, M.S. poster, Ph.D. oral or Ph. D. poster), the home department must rank these as first and second at the time of submission as noted below.  In the event there are a large number of submissions, only students’ papers ranked first in their home departments will be included in the competition. Also, each oral competition abstract may also be presented in the appropriate subject matter session.  On submission, check appropriate competition session in the First Section Preference.  If you wish to also present in your subject matter session, answer yes to Option 1, and check the appropriate section in the Second Section Preference.   A web-printed copy of the abstract must be accompanied by a letter of intent from the graduate students’ department head to Dr. Catherine W. Ernst, Michigan State University, 3385 Anthony Hall, East Lansing, MI 48824-1225; Fax 517-432-0753 by October 31.  See http://adsa.asas.org/midwest/2007 for complete details.

Again for 2007: Each oral competition abstract may also be presented in the appropriate subject matter session.  On submission, check appropriate oral competition session in the First Section Preference.  If you wish to also present in your oral subject matter session, answer yes to Option 1, and check the appropriate section in the Second Section Preference.   A web-printed copy of the abstract must be accompanied by a letter of intent from the graduate students’ department head to Dr. Catherine W. Ernst, Michigan State University, 3385 Anthony Hall, East Lansing, MI 48824-1225; Fax 517-432-0753 by October 31.  See http://adsa.asas.org/midwest/20067 for complete details.

 UNDERGRADUATE COMPETITIONS

The number of undergraduates from one institution who can submit and present research competition papers is not limited.  Like the graduate competition abstracts, each undergraduate competition abstract may also be presented in the appropriate subject matter session.  On submission, check appropriate competition session in the First Section Preference.  If you wish to also present in your subject matter session, check the appropriate section in the Second Section Preference.  Each student must identify the abstract as a competitive paper on the web submission form and mail a copy printed from the web to Dr. Catherine W. Ernst, Michigan State University, 3385 Anthony Hall, East Lansing, MI 48824-1225; Fax 517-432-0753 by October 31.  See http://adsa.asas.org/midwest/2007 for complete details.

 ABSTRACT CODING AND WEBSITE ERROR FAQ

Q. What do I do when I'm submitting an abstract and get a "500 internal server error"?
A. When this happens the first thing you must do is double check your abstract. Certain characters when copied and pasted from word processors will cause errors in the submission. Check your abstract for apostrophes and quotes, then if you find any replace them by deleting them and typing the character back into place. Word processors sometimes format these characters differently than what gets input when you use your keyboard to type it into place. If you are still getting an error open up a plain text editor such as notepad (for windows) or textedit (for mac) and cut and paste your abstract into it. Then from notepad or textedit cut and paste back into the abstract text box. If all of this fails, contact us at abstract@assochq.org and we will attempt to help you.

Q. Why doesn't the coding show up in the title box when I click a special character?
A. The script that generates the coding will only work in the abstract box, regardless of where your cursor is located. This means if you need special characters in your title, you will need to cut and paste them from the abstract body text box.

Q. Why aren't my special characters showing up where I want them in my abstract?
A. If you have cut and paste your abstract into the text box, and are going back through to insert your special characters the script puts the coding at the end of the existing text. This means, if you click a certain character you will need to cut and paste the coding into place from the end of the text.

Q. Even though I have entered my characters correctly, they are not displaying properly on the preview. What should I do?
A. Often this problem is caused by web browser incompatibility. The best way to check is to either upgrade your browser or try a different browser altogether. The system has been tested on all major browsers, although it tends to work the best on Internet Explorer version 4.0 and above.

LOGGING IN AFTER I’VE SUBMITTED MY ABSTRACT

Q. How do I log back in to edit my abstract before the deadline?
A. This process has changed from years past.  During abstract submission the first thing you are asked to do is input your valid e-mail address and a password.  Once you’ve gone through and completed your abstract an email will be automatically generated and sent to you containing your tracking number and password.  Once you have these you will be able to go to http:/www.fass-abstracts.org/authorlogin.asp and enter the information needed to login and edit your abstract.  Use your email address as your login, and the password you set up. If you have submitted more than one abstract, use the tracking number to identify each one.