Why is the conducting layer in resistive touchscreen placed perpendicularly?
When the end user presses the top film, the conductors touches and a circuit is thus formed.


Correct. The controller works by checking which row is touching which column.

The touchscreen controller works as shown by the pseudo code below:

function checkTouch(){
  for each row {              // Switch on each row in turn.
    switch row on;
    for each column {
      if column is on {       // See if column is connected.
        return (row, column); //Contact found.
      }
    }
    switch row off;           // Disable the row.
  }
  return (null, null);        // no touch detected.
}


Turn on each row and see which column gets a signal. For an r x c touch screen this requires r x n pins on the controller.


  Also, what does the conductor looks like? Are they fine conducting strings placed close together?


The conductors are transparent conductive coating applied to the screen material. Special edge connectors are used to make contact.