[Air-l] Why not make Aoir 5.0 "Virtual conference"?

[meiwu at umac.mo]

As we are all researchers on the "virtual world", why should we still keep 
to
the old, pre-Internet tradition of holding an annual conference in a "real 
venue,"
but not in a "virtual venue"?
All the technologies to hold a virtual conference are available. What we
need is to be more innovative in practising what we have been campaigning 
in
our research: being global and connecting to as many people as possible 
with
the help of the internet.
What I suggest is that Aoir 5.0 could select one "real venue," and at the 
same
time, set up a "virtual venue" for those who have registered, but for 
whatever
reasons (be entry regulations, cost consideration, busy schedules, 
hurricanes, etc..)
could not come to the "real venue" to participate, specially for panel 
discussions. Virtual
participants can also organize local panels.
Just throw my little thought here.
Wu Mei
University of Macau