What it's like to be a POPL referee; or How to write an extended abstract so that it is more likely to be accepted

I've just served on my second POPL program committee, and thought that some people may be interested in my observations. A POPL extended abstract should be designed to be read by the program committee and should not be the final paper. As with all writing, it should be written with its audience in mind. An author who has not served on the committee may not have a clear conception of the refereeing process and what effect that has on the acceptance of papers.