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I am making a scientific poster. A block spills from the left column to the right column. So I divided it into two blocks, one with a heading in the left column at the bottom and one without heading in the right column at the top. The design of those blocks looks, as if a regular block was cut in half and placed where described. However, a colleague did not get that at once and wondered why the right upper block had not headline. Should I put a "continued" or "cont." or "cont'd" at the bottom/top of the two blocks, or trust my readers to get that?

EDIT: My blocks are: 1. Introduction 2. Discussion the challenge / issue 3. (the one split) about given a general solution framework 4. Given an example implementation. 5. Contact Information and Acknowledgments

I don't see how I could rearrange the blocks.

Also:

  • The conference gave specifications that it has to be portrait.
  • My (large) boxes don't allow row based.

Note: I am using tikzposter for my poster (in case someone cares).

Make42
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    Whether or not you write "cont'd", readers will be confused at first glance. This is not good. You don't want your readers' first reaction to be confusion. Is there any way at all you can avoid breaking the block? (Form does play a role in disseminating information - it's not only about substance. And this is doubly important for posters.) – Stephan Kolassa Sep 30 '15 at 11:48
  • @Stephan Kolassa: I don't see how (see edit). – Make42 Sep 30 '15 at 12:14
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    From the edit it seems to me that you're designing the poster as though it is an article, but this is not the way posters should be designed. – Massimo Ortolano Sep 30 '15 at 12:21
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    Why do you have two columns in the first place? – Nobody Sep 30 '15 at 12:22
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    Please note that fixing your individual poster’s layout here would be off-topic due to being too localised (in particular since we would have to know and possibly understand your actual poster). Your original question was okay, focussed and of sufficient general interest. (If you are willing to share your poster in chat, I can offer to give a short opinion on it.) – Wrzlprmft Sep 30 '15 at 12:27
  • I meant it as a general question. Sorry, if I got too specific by answering to the answers. – Make42 Sep 30 '15 at 13:09
  • @Wrzlprmft No! Too localized is no longer a close reason, and for good reason. – Please stop being evil Sep 30 '15 at 17:14
  • @thedarkwanderer: On Academia, it still is, and for a good reason, see for example here. – Wrzlprmft Sep 30 '15 at 20:22
  • Do have a look at the excellent advice given at http://betterposters.blogspot.com – semi-extrinsic Oct 01 '15 at 21:31

2 Answers2

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If you really must split your block, I would recommending to make it clear that you did, e.g., by repeating the title (if your blocks have such a thing) on the second block and appending (continued) to it. Alternatively, you can enumerate the two blocks, e.g., Framework I and Framework II.

However, if any possible, try to avoid the whole situation, e.g., by:

  • Rearranging exchangeable blocks such that you do not have to split a block. At the very least, you can place the block with references and acknowledgements (if you have one) almost everywhere.

  • Split your block at a structurally feasible point and give the second part a different title.

  • Change the layout of your poster completely. For example, make some columns wider and some thinner, switch between portrait and landscape (if the conference gave no recommendation in this respect) or make the layout row-based intstead of column-based.

Wrzlprmft
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Your poster blocks aren't rearrangeable because you wrote your poster like a paper/article. It should not be written this way, in part to avoid this exact situation. This is also why it is not obvious to others that your block is continued top-right; posters should not be required to be read in a specific order and your assumption that people would assume the top right always follows the bottom left is unfounded. If you have time, redo the poster to take advantage of the format instead of being hindered by it. Consider approaching the layout of the poster first and then re-writing modular pieces of information to fill the poster afterwords.

If you don't have time, make sure you at least remove the block split. Rewrite the section to be shorter or split it into two distinct sections, adjust your margins between blocks and/or your font-size, etc.

Please stop being evil
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  • http://www.makesigns.com/tutorials/scientific-poster-parts.aspx disagrees with you about the order-to-read, so does http://colinpurrington.com/tips/poster-design with "As long as you maintain sufficient white space, keep column alignments logical, and provide clear cues to your readers how they should travel through your poster elements, you can and should get creative." – Make42 Oct 02 '15 at 12:24