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Re: Concerns about Singapore

2016-04-12 06:03:21
On Mon, Apr 11, 2016 at 07:54:25PM -0400, Ted Lemon wrote:
If we were to attempt such a thing, how do you think it would work?

Let me preface this by saying that I think attempts to completely
mimic the current in-person meeting experience as it exists probably
won't work.  They might: but they probably won't.  But then again,
I don't think that's entirely necessary: processes and procedures
change (compare boarding a steamship in 1930 with an aircraft in 2005)
and evolve in order to work with technology.

So if I were to envision this, things I'd want to experiment with
would include:

- passive view-only, listen-only read-only access to anyone, anonymously.
(That is: no registration required.)

- levels of read-write access, perhaps (roughly speaking) distinguished
as text, audio, and video.  Participants could select based on their
available bandwidth and on the level they're comfortable with.  I think
it's reasonable to require registration for write access.

- a channel for presentation content only. Again, this is an option for
those with limited bandwidth or limited time.

- ability to delay/time-shift.

- perhaps restructuring long sessions into smaller time slots.  If people
have all travelled to the same place, then it makes sense to get a lot
done in a short time, and so a four hour session (for example) makes
sense.  But if people are in disparate locations, then maybe four one-hour
sessions make more sense.  This also better accomodate people who have
trouble carving out four hours in the middle of their day.  Or night.

- integrated storage of sessions, so that someone can watch, listen,
read, and absorb the entire experience.  Useful for someone half a
planet away who won't be (or can't be) awake for real-time participation.

- translations and/or text captioning and/or some kind of assistance
for non-native speakers and the hearing impaired.

- emphasis on the inclusion of participants who can't make it to meetings
today, either because of time, money, politics, distance, family, job, etc.

Over and above all of this: a willingness to experiment and to have
some of those expirements fail -- which they will.

---rsk