--- name: podc-submission description: Use when auditing an ACM PODC submission for HotCRP readiness, covering the two-step abstract-registration then full-paper deadline, the ACM Master template with the 10-page-merits budget and unbounded full version, lightweight double-blind anonymization, the regular-paper-vs-Brief-Announcement choice, and desk-risk triage before the AoE cutoff. --- # PODC Submission Run this audit before uploading to the PODC HotCRP site (`podc26.hotcrp.com` for the 2026 cycle). PODC — the ACM Symposium on Principles of Distributed Computing — judges a **model, a theorem, and a proof**, so the submission is read as a mathematical argument, not as a system or a study. Every number below was read from the PODC 2026 call for papers on 2026-07-09 via search renderings (see `resources/official-source-map.md`); treat them as a one-cycle snapshot and reopen the live call first. ## The two-step deadline PODC 2026 separates **abstract registration** from **full-paper submission**, and both are AoE: - **Abstract registration** locks in title, abstract, authors, and conflicts a few days early (PODC 2026: **11 February 2026**). Miss it and the system will not accept the PDF later. - **Full-paper submission** uploads the anonymized PDF (PODC 2026: **16 February 2026**, 23:59 AoE). Register with the *real* title and abstract, not a placeholder — the abstract drives reviewer bidding among a specialized PC, and a registered abstract that diverges from the final paper quietly worsens your match. ## Regular paper or Brief Announcement — decide before formatting PODC has two tracks, and choosing wrong wastes the slot: | Situation | Track | Limit | |---|---|---| | Complete result with full proofs, ready for archival publication | **Regular paper** | Submission unbounded; **first 10 pages after the title page** carry the merits; published ≤10 pages | | Work in progress, a result whose full version is (or will be) published elsewhere, or a small self-contained contribution | **Brief Announcement** | Submission **≤5 pages** incl. title/abstract/references; published ≤3 pages | A Brief Announcement is a real strategic option — it timestamps a result, reaches the community, and does **not** bar a later full paper elsewhere — not a demotion. But a regular result padded into a BA, or an incomplete result stretched into a regular paper, both read as misjudged. See `podc-supplementary` for the content split. ## Format and page budget - **ACM Master template (`acmart`)**, two-column proceedings format, unmodified. This is the ACM path — do not carry an LNCS/LIPIcs habit over from a DISC or OPODIS submission. - **The 10-page-merits rule:** a regular *submission* has **no page limit**, but only the abstract and the **first 10 pages following the title page** are guaranteed to be read. Everything after is read at the committee's discretion. So the first 10 pages must contain: the model, the result statement, the positioning against prior work, and the key technical/conceptual ideas — enough to decide acceptance. Authors are encouraged to submit the **full version** (all proofs) as the submission; the extra pages hold the proofs a convinced reviewer will check. - **Published length:** accepted regular papers appear in **≤10 pages** two-column; Brief Announcements in **≤3 pages**. Plan the compression now, not in May. ## Lightweight double-blind sweep PODC 2026 runs **lightweight double-blind** review: the submission must not reveal author names, affiliations, or email addresses anywhere. This is a change from PODC's historically single-blind practice — do not carry a prior single-blind habit forward, but also do not over-anonymize past what the call asks. ```bash # Mechanical pass on the submission PDF pdfinfo paper.pdf | grep -Ei 'author|creator|producer' # scrub identifying metadata pdftotext paper.pdf - | grep -nEi 'university|@[a-z0-9.]+\.edu|acknowledg|grant|thanks' | head pdftotext paper.pdf - | grep -nEi 'our (previous|prior|earlier) (work|paper)|we showed in \[' | head ``` The theory-specific leaks: a self-citation phrased as "in our earlier paper [12] we proved..." (make it third-person "[12] proves..."), a named funding grant, an acknowledgements block, a non-anonymized arXiv link, or a repository/author page for an optional simulation. Neutralize self-references and remove the acknowledgements until camera-ready. ## The proof is the deliverable Because PODC has **no artifact track**, the reviewers' object of scrutiny is the **proof**. Before upload, confirm: - Every theorem invoked on the first 10 pages has its proof present in the submission/full version. - The **model box** (network, timing, fault model, adversary, cost measure) is fixed *before* the first theorem and no proof silently changes it. - Lemmas are stated where used and proved, not gestured at; a "proof sketch" in the body has its full version in the appendix. ## Desk-risk triage | Finding at audit time | Severity | Real fix | |---|---|---| | Merits case not made within the first 10 pages | Effectively unreviewable | Restructure so model+result+delta+key ideas fit in 10 pages | | Template altered / not `acmart` two-column | Format-reject grade | Recompile clean in the ACM Master template | | Identity leak in PDF, self-citation, or linked repo | Anonymity violation | Third-person self-cites, strip metadata/acknowledgements, anonymize links | | Abstract not registered by the earlier date | No submission slot exists | Nothing fixes this post-AoE — calendar it now | | Proof gap or missing lemma in a first-10-pages theorem | Soundness risk | Close the proof or weaken the claim before submitting | | Regular result forced into a ≤5-page Brief Announcement (or vice versa) | Misrouted | Re-choose the track before formatting | | Same result under review at DISC/SPAA/a journal | Dual-submission exposure | Withdraw one venue; a *preprint* on arXiv is allowed, a concurrent *submission* is not | ## Final-week order of operations 1. Freeze the model box and theorem statements early; the proof text can be polished, the claims cannot churn. 2. Register title/abstract/authors/conflicts before the 11 Feb cutoff. 3. Decide regular vs. Brief Announcement and format to the right budget. 4. Run the anonymization checks on the *final* PDF; make every self-citation third-person. 5. Confirm the first 10 pages make the full merits case and that all invoked proofs are present in the full version. 6. Fill every HotCRP field — topics that match your model/subarea, conflicts for every coauthor's institution and recent collaborators — a day early. 7. Re-download the uploaded PDF and read it cold to confirm it is the file you meant. ## Reverify each cycle - The exact dates and whether abstract registration precedes the full-paper deadline. - The double-blind wording and how strictly it is enforced (recently changed). - Whether the cycle runs an author-response/rebuttal phase (待核实 for 2026). - The Brief Announcement limits and the 10-page-merits wording. - Any generative-AI-use disclosure policy (待核实). ## Output format ```text [PODC submission status] ready / blocked / needs work [Track] regular paper / brief announcement [Registration] title/abstract/authors/conflicts locked by the earlier deadline? yes/no [Format] first-10-pages merits case complete? acmart two-column? published-length plan? [Anonymity] clean / leaks: (self-cites third-person? metadata scrubbed?) [Proofs] every first-10-pages theorem has a present proof? model box fixed? yes/no [Fix queue] ```