2021Q3 Reports: Virtual Infrastructure Committee (VIC)

The virtual conference infrastructure of ACL2021 is largely based on Underline.io, so there is much less burden on the virtual infrastructure committee (VIC).

Before signing the contract with Underline.io, the VIC chairs were mostly working on deciding the possible platforms for ACL2021. After comparing different options, we decided to use Underline.io considering that both COLING2020 and NAACL2021 went reasonably well with Underline.io. Underline.io is a new platform for online scientific conferences founded in 2020 after many academic conferences went virtual. Essentially, Underline.io serves as the central portal which replaces the Mini-Conf as used by ACL2020 and EMNLP2020, so that the VIC no longer needs to develop the website. It also integrates Zoom, GatherTown, and chat features, so there is no need to work with various other platforms separately.

After signing the contract, the VIC chairs are acting as the agent between Underline.io and the organizing committee to make sure issues are resolved in time. For example, we coordinate with Underline.io to make sure questions about anti-harassment policy raised by the ACL Executive Committee and the Professional Conduct Committee are addressed.