FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
This page presents some frequently asked questions and answers.
- NEW TO THIS SITE?
- CONFERENCE LOGISTICS
- CONFERENCE PROGRAMMING
- ABOUT SECOND LIFE
Can’t find an answer to your question? please ask!
NEW TO THIS SITE?
Q. What is this web site?
This is the networking website for the PAN All 2009 Conference. If you are involved with the conference, please create an account to connect with other participants. Podcasts and pre-conference material will be available prior and during the conference through this site. We encourage all conference participants to join the online discussion!
Q. How do I join this site?
This site is free to join: link
When joining this site, make sure you fill out your profile completely so others can connect with you too.
Q. How do I find with other people on this site?
There are different ways to connect with other conference participants. Click on the members link on the Home page to see everyone currently on the network.
On the right side of the homepage you will see links to the titles, organizations, interests and expertise of other participants – click on the links to see who is who!
To see a particular person’s profile, click on their name or image. Perhaps leave them a note to say ‘Hi’.
Q. How do I connect with other people on this site?
Click on a person’s profile that you wish to connect with. Under the person’s image on their profile page you can click to add them a friend or a fan. You can also click ‘person I want to meet" to keep a list of people to meet face-to-face at the conference.
Q. How do I add my existing Twitter, blog, photos and/or bookmarks to my profile links?
This site allows participants to incorporate their existing Twitter, blog, bookmark and photo feeds into their conference profile. You can add the feeds to your profile from your profile screen: link
Please explore other participant’s profiles to get to know more about them.
Q. Can I start a discussion on this site?
Absolutely! We want to hear what you are thinking about and encourage participants to engage with one another on the web and at the conference.
There many places throughout the site to start an online discussion. Here is a link
Q. What’s with the different maps on this site?
The Map tab on the top displays an interactive Google map of the local Penang conference area.
The map link on the home page shows the home location of the conference participants from all over the globe.
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CONFERENCE LOGISTICS
Q. Where can I get reimbursed for the costs of attending the conference?
A reimbursement desk will be set up at the conference venue. The reimbursements will be made in the following manner:
– Airfare in USD cash
– A fixed amount of USD 120
– Meals that are not provided by the conference or the hotel and each day’s incidentals, in Malaysian Ringgit
– If you needed to stay at a hotel during transit, the cost of hotel in USD cash
– A fixed amount of USD 120
– Meals that are not provided by the conference or the hotel and each day’s incidentals, in Malaysian Ringgit
– If you needed to stay at a hotel during transit, the cost of hotel in USD cash
Q. Where can I get information for Malaysia visa?
To find out if you need a visa for Malaysia, please check this website: http://www.imi.gov.my/eng/perkhidmatan/im_Permit.asp.
If you need further assistance for applying for visa, please contact Ms. Katie Gartner. See more information here.
If you need further assistance for applying for visa, please contact Ms. Katie Gartner. See more information here.
Q. How do I go to the hotel from the airport?
Please take a taxi to the hotel upon arrival at the airport. The hotel is a 30 minute drive (18km) from the airport. The fare is approximately MYR 38. More information about travel and accommodation can be found here.
Q. How do I go from the hotel to the conference venue?
WOU is a nice walk from the Evergreen Laurel Hotel. (map link)
There will be shuttle buses for the participants for going to WOU from the Hotel in the morning, as well as from WOU to the Hotel in the evenings
Q. Can I access Internet at the hotel and the conference venue?
There is 24 hour broadband internet access in all the hotel rooms at Evergreen Laurel free of charge. At WOU, there will be free wireless available in the main conference area on 12th floor and in the tutorial rooms. Rooms assigned for learning clinics will have Internet connectivity, but no wireless. A “telecentre/newsroom” will be set up for more IT intensive activities like file uploading, etc. plus for those without laptops. Please bring your laptop to access Internet and to participate in other e-events.
Q. What kind of clothes should I bring to Penang?
Malaysia has an equatorial climate throughout the year with temperatures ranging from 32C during the day to 22C during the night. You may wear light comfortable clothing but also have some warm clothes for the air-conditioned rooms inside the venue.
Q. Where can I eat during the conference?
Breakfast is included in the hotel room cost. Tea-break and lunch will be provided at the conference venue. One the first day of the conference, (12th June), there will be group dinner at the Sun Yat Sun Centre in Penang.
Q. Is there Vegetarian and Halal food available at the conference?
There will be a variety of Vegetarian dishes at the hotel as well as the conference venue.
Malaysia government regulations stipulate that all food catered at WOU must be Halal. All other venues for the conference will also cater Halal food. For any dietary queries, contact Ms. Katie Gartner.
Q. What do I need to do if I want to change the flights/hotel arrangements?
The Hotel Concierge will reconfirm flights for the Conference participants. But complex flight changes/ticket validations, which requires consultation with the airline offices, must be done by the participants themselves. All the participants’ flights have been ticketed by different agencies and therefore any changes must be done individually.
Q. If I want to stay in Penang for personal holidays, can I get a discount at the hotel?
Yes. Participants who want to stay in Penang for their personal holidays before or after the conference will enjoy the same conference room rates.
Q. How is this conference impacting our environment?
A modest contribution was made by PAN to offset the carbon emissions of flights taken by approx. 180 participants attending the PAN All conference in Penang, Malaysia in June 2009. The proceeds will help fund selected United Nations-sanctioned programmes to protect rainforests in Malaysia , a natural carbon sink, that reduce greenhouse gases and curb the onset of climate change. Through a trust fund managed by the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) on behalf of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (NRE), projects satisfying the stipulated criteria will be funded by these proceeds. Trustees of this fund will include the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia and Malaysia Airlines.
Our contribution was MYR 7400 (CAD 2500)
Acknowledgement letter from Malaysian Airlines to IDRC
If you want to learn more about how the carbon credits are being used, please visit this website: link
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CONFERENCE PROGRAMMING
Q. Can I present my research (books, demos, posters etc) at the conference?
The conference will have numerous mechanisms for sharing your research outputs. Towards the end of April, we are going to issue a call for ideas for participating in the different interactive clinics/workshops. Stay tuned for more information.
Q. How will I be contributing to the PAN-All and to IDRC’s programming?
You will have a chance to contribute to the conference in many ways, including through possibly presenting in Second Life, organising a clinic on a particular topic, thinking about key ways in which your work has contributed to the development of the Asian information society and helping IDRC think about future research priorities
Q. Will I be influencing IDRC’s programming?
Through helping IDRC understand how your work has contributed to developing the information society in the developing world, you’ll be helping IDRC better understand what its grants help achieve. This, in turn, can help justify continued programming in this field. Moreover, by helping to identify key future research issues, this can influence IDRC’s future research thematics in the field.
Q. How will I benefit from participating in the PAN-All?
We hope you’ll benefit from learning about important issues in the field of ICTD; from developing capacities in issues such as project management, resource mobilisation and communication; as well as from networking with other ICTD researchers and practitioners.
Q. What outputs will stem from the Conference?
The conference will include an extensive online social reporting strategy that will result in a conference website that will include multi-media footage and blogging about the conference discussions. All presentations during the Second Life pre-conference will also be recorded and podcast via the conference site. Here the podcast subscription link: link
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