A few weeks ago, I posted some questions about poster presentations at philosophy conferences. Now that RoME 2012 has finished, I think it'd be useful for me to share what I learned at the conference (beyond what was already mentioned in the comments on my previous post).
First, my poster definitely had too much information, even though I had tried to avoid this. One professor told me a good rule of thumb is to keep the word count of a poster to no higher than 800 (although he admitted to violating this rule with his own poster). To have a poster with only 800 words at the approximate dimensions the conference advised (38" x 46"), I suspect body text would have to be around 32-point font. (Mine was only 24-point.)
Second, about half the presenters had their posters laminated. I didn't. Even though it would have cost a bit more, I think it would have been worth the investment: it looks better, and your poster won't take nearly as much damage during the conference (from being mounted/dismounted, rolled/unrolled, etc.).
Third, it was definitely a good idea to have a handout for these sessions. A few people opted to read the handout rather than the poster, and since only a few people can huddle around a poster at once without impairing one another's vision, handouts can keep interested parties (who can't see your poster well) from being drawn to other posters.
I suspect I'll do better at making a compelling poster if/when I get another chance at putting one together.
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