General talk about software patterns

[Ville Reijonen <vilre AT cs.tut.fi>]

Dear colleagues,

We are proud to announce that there will be VikingPLoP 2012 after a
break of couple of years. First VikingPLoP was held in Denmark in 2002.
VikingPLop is the Nordic conference on Pattern Languages of Programs.

Here is a direct link for the short version of the call for papers:
http://www.vikingplop.org/VikingPLoP_2012_Short_CFP.pdf


CALL FOR PAPERS

VikingPLoP 2012
The Nordic Conference on Pattern Languages of Programs
March 17-20, 2012
Boahtteáigi, Saariselkä, Finland
http://www.vikingplop.org


Important Dates
---------------

    * January 2nd: Paper submission deadline
    * January 9th: Start of shepherding
    * February 2nd: Second draft due
    * February 9th: Paper acceptance notification
    * February 16th: End of shepherding
    * March 2nd: Final version due
    * March 2nd: Closing date for early registration
    * March 17-20, 2012: Conference
    * September 30: Proceedings version due


VikingPLoP is a Nordic PLoP conference. VikingPLoP 2012 will be held in
Saariselkä, Finland from 17th to 20th of March. The location is in the
middle of ruggedly beautiful wilderness of Lapland with marvelous
landscape and wondrous fjelds. In March the snowy Lapland nature is at
its best. The venue is easy to reach by airplane as it is in the
vicinity of Saariselkä ski resort.

The conference offers writers' workshops that allow you to learn about
patterns, to receive feedback on your own work, and to discuss with
fellow pattern enthusiasts. It is an excellent venue to exchange
knowledge about patterns and learn from other experts. We especially
encourage new-comers and non-academic pattern enthusiasts to participate
in the conference. Open and supportive community makes VikingPLop a
great opportunity to get familiar with patterns and PLoP culture

VikingPLoP accepts papers containing patterns or pattern languages as
well as experience reports and papers related to the theory and use of
patterns. Papers submitted to VikingPLoP cover a wide range of subjects,
from technical issues, like distributed machine control and C++
programming, to social and organization issues.

The submitted papers should contain one or more patterns and have up to
10 pages following LNCS format guidelines. Longer pattern languages or
sequences and work-in-progress papers will also be considered for
inclusion. All accepted papers will receive in-depth shepherding by an
experienced pattern author before the conference. First-time pattern
authors are especially welcomed to participate in the conference. If any
questions will arise, contact the conference chairs.

The core of VikingPLoP is writers' workshops where authors work together
to improve their papers. Before patterns or other papers are accepted
for a writers' workshop, they are shepherded (non-anonymously). This
means that an experienced author will discuss your submission with you,
so that you can refine your paper prior to the conference. All accepted
submissions will be workshopped and peer-reviewed in the conference.


Proceedings
-----------

The proceedings of the workshops is published in the report series of
Tampere University of Technology, Department of Software Systems. The
proceedings is published as a printed version and electronically (as a
pdf-file). Papers discussed at a writer's workshop at this conference
qualify for submission to the new journal Transactions on Pattern
Languages of Programming published by Springer.


Shepherding
-----------

The shepherding process is essentially a reviewing process. The Shepherd
guides the sheep into a more mature understanding of his or her pattern.
Shepherds are individuals, with experience in pattern writing, assigned
to an author's paper for helping the author improve the pattern.

Shepherds also have experience with the shepherding procedure, either
having been a shepherd before or a sheep (an author). Shepherding is
about improving the pattern itself, while the Shepherd maintains that
the author is the one doing the pattern writing. The shepherding process
is done before the paper is to be presented at a conference.


Submission Procedure
--------------------

There is a three stage submission process:

       * Initial submissions should be made by January 2, 2012. Papers will be
         assessed for suitability. Papers are then accepted for shepherding 
and
         assigned a shepherd who will help the author improve the paper for
         several weeks.
       * Half way through the shepherding process, on February 2, authors are
         expected to submit a second draft. The paper will be assessed for
         quality and the author's willingness to accept feedback. This
         review will determine whether a paper is accepted to the conference
         or not.
       * Authors and shepherds are expected to continue working on the paper
         until March 2, 2012. Final drafts for the conference should be
         submitted on this date. The authors of accepted papers are also
         expected to register for the conference before the close of early
         registration on this date. Failure to do so may result in acceptance
         being withdrawn. In the case of papers with multiple authors at least
         one author is expected to register to attend by the close of
         early registrations.

To submit your first version of the paper, please visit VikingPLoP website,
http://www.vikingplop.org/submission.html


Conference Organization
-----------------------

Program chairs:
       * Veli-Pekka Eloranta, Tampere University of Technology, Finland,
         veli-pekka.eloranta (at) tut.fi
       * Marko Leppänen, Tampere University of Technology, Finland,
         marko.leppanen (at) tut.fi

Program committee:

       * Ville Reijonen, Kauppalehti Online Development, Finland
       * Johannes Koskinen, Tampere University of Technology, Finland
       * Juha Pärssinen, VTT, Technical Research Centre of Finland, Finland
       * Kai Koskimies, Tampere University of Technology, Finland
       * James O. Coplien, Gertrud&   Cope, Denmark


For more information, please visit http://www.vikingplop.org/