>I think it would be great if portions of the convention were webcast for us
>dedicated "other" cavers.
Actually, a good bit of the 'meat' of conventions is already available online or
otherwise:
-- The winners of all the salons are on the website, including images.
-- The 'Best of the 200X Photo Salon' is available on disc from the NSS
Library.
-- Previews of all the Video Salon entries are available on the website, and
the full programs can be checked out from the AV Library.
-- Much of the science discussed at conventions winds up in the Journal of
Cave and Karst Science.
-- Most of the U.S. and International presentations eventually wind up as
articles in the NSS News.
Yes, we do need to (even) better leverage technology to to provide more
and better info to those stalwarts who are vacation-challenged, but that can
never compare to actually rubbing elbows with long-time friends from other
parts of the country, eating and drinking and having fun together, often in a
locale that's new and exciting. I learned this lesson late (after 20 years of
membership), but now have not missed a convention in 25 years. My
experience is that the core group of every-year convention attendees (even
when it's in Florida or Maine) is the core of NSS volunteerism.
Alex
--
Alex Sproul, NSS 8086
NSS IT Committee
