Oral Presentation Guidelines

You may also download a full resolution printable PDF of the Oral Presentation Guidelines.

Time Allotment

Oral presenters will be allowed 10 minutes for presentation and 5 minutes for discussion and questions from the audience. This time limit is strictly enforced; going over your 10-minute allotted presentation time will reduce the time for questions. Conversely, you are encouraged to use your full 10 minutes so that there will not be unused time before the next presentation.

Audio Visual Details

Please bring your presentation (MS PowerPoint or Apple Keynote only) to the Speaker Services Room at the Washington State Convention Center on a CD-ROM or a portable USB device and leave it with a staff member at least 4 hours prior to your talk (for early morning presentations, be sure your presentation is uploaded or submitted the night before). Your presentation will be loaded on the projection computer in your respective session room.

CROI will be supporting both Macintosh and PC platforms. The Speaker Services Room will have workstations of both types as well as staff members available to assist you with questions and reviews. When you arrive at the Speaker Services Room, please provide the platform (PC or Mac) and software version used to create your PowerPoint or Keynote file. If you would like to practice your presentation, the technical director will gladly assist you.

Equipment - Each session room will include:

  1. a computer technician / operator whom will advance the PowerPoint or Keynote presentation (the technician will be stationed adjacent to the stage, should you experience any technical difficulties)
  2. 2 PC and 2 Macintosh computer systems which the assigned technician will operate
  3. each room will have 1-2 screens for data slides and possibly 1 screen for image magnification (for head/shoulders shot of speakers)
  4. a lectern with microphone (adjustable height)
  5. an LCD panel next to the lectern (for speakers to view the slides being projected on the screens throughout the room)
  6. a remote that will cue the assigned technician to advance your slides
  7. a remote mouse pointer (please plan on spending 5 minutes in rehearsal room in advance of your presentation to ensure the best possible performance) 
  8. a flat panel monitor on the head table (for moderators to view the slides being projected on the screens throughout the room)
  9. microphones on the head table (for moderator questions) and in the aisles (for audience questions)
  10. an electronic timer/clock on the head table
  11. a laser pointer at the lectern

Presentation Guidelines

One Slide/One Idea Limit each slide to one main idea to keep your visual presentation simple and easy to read. A good rule to follow: one slide per minute. Example: speaking for 10 minutes with 5 minutes of questions = 10 total slides.

Use of Color Use dark colored background (green, blue, maroon, orange, purple). Please do not use black or white. Using color will enhance your presentation and be easier to read. Please make text either white or a corresponding color to the background. Please do not use white text on a light background or dark text on a dark background. Use bold, high contrast colored lines in graphics (avoid using red on blue backgrounds because of low contrast).

Text Use short, concise text, and keep it simple. A good slide has a maximum of 20 words per slide. It is recommended that all text be double-spaced. Avoid the use of ALL CAPITAL letters or underlined text, as they are difficult to read.

Graphics Use clear graphics. Incorporate only the essential elements. When using photos, please make sure they are 72 dpi (anything larger will make your final file size much larger than what it should be, and PowerPoint and/or Keynote doesn’t always work well with large file sizes). When creating charts and graphs, make sure to label axes and include legends. Leave blank space around charts and graphs - text placed too close to graphs (except for labels and numbers) will make your slide appear cluttered. It is highly recommended that you bring all elements with you in case they need to be reinserted into the presentation.

Readability Remember, your slide must be readable from the back of the session room (3,500-18,000 square feet), just as you must be able to be heard in all parts of the room.

Animation Many presentations include animations, and the conference continues to encourage this. Animations are very effective when created properly using the available PowerPoint and/or Keynote tools. If animations are created outside of PowerPoint or Keynote, please consult our technical staff in advance to guarantee the software availability for playback on site.

Movies On occasion, presentations include compressed movie files. While this usually does not create a problem, we encourage you to make the staff aware of your technical needs in advance, so your presentation will run smoothly at CROI.