Ten simple rules for organizing a virtual conference - Anywhere

The First African Virtual Conference on Bioinformatics 2009 (AFBIX09) [1], organized by the Bioinformatics Organization [2] and the International Society for Computational Biology Student Council's Regional Student Groups of Africa and Morocco (ISCBSC RSG-Africa and RSG-Morocco) [3] received support from the African Society for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (ASBCB) [4]. The aim was to provide students and scientists in the bioinformatics and computational biology fields a chance to network through a unique platform conceptualized as “hubs.” These hubs then gave participants the opportunity to foster both physical and virtual interactions as well as develop collaborations, irrespective of geographical location.