What’s next for NECC?

A few years ago, the big splash at NECC was live blogging. After that it was podcasting, when Apple first announced that iTunes was going to support podcasts at NECC. Last year big splashes were the Bloggers Cafe, Twitter and back channeling.

So what’s next?

I don’t think too many people are going to be surprised when I surmise that the big splash this year is going to be live video coverage of the conference. In fact, I dare say that the people who are not at the conference are going to experience something pretty unique (as of now). I’m guessing that the people who can’t attend NECC are going to have their choice of multiple sessions to watch live at any given time.

Think about that. Sitting at home and not just being able to read about the sessions, not just being able to hear them, not just being able to participate with people sitting in the audience, but actually getting the chance to WATCH them live and even have some choice regarding WHICH sessions you’re going to be watching!

Why do I think it’s going to happen? Well, think about how big uStream has become in education. Every day people are broadcasting high quality professional development opportunities. Hang out on Twitter long enough and you’ll find people announcing live streams from conferences around the country. While it may still be in its infancy, it’s a significant enough technology that Will Richardson and David Jakes are doing a spotlight session on the subject at NECC.

But the real reason it’s going to be so big…. is simply because its become so easy to do. Anybody with a webcam can be broadcasting live. And simply because they can, people will. And so long as they’re doing it, they’re going to want an audience. Which means that people will be announcing them on Twitter, on Ning, on their blogs, and everywhere else they can. This means that viewers away from the conference will not only have some choice in what they watch, but they’ll actually have people competing for their attention! Just like at a real conference, off site viewers are going to need to make some hard decisions. Which sessions do they watch live? Which do they want to see and participate in the back channel, and which can they just catch up on later?

If this actually occurs, it will be a major victory on several fronts. For one thing, people that can’t afford to travel to conferences can actually participate in real time. That really is something special that’s hard to measure the value of. Additionally, the message from these presentations can reach much larger audiences over time. I still get comments from presentations of mine that I did several years ago because people are finding recordings of them after all this time. These archives are an incredible resource for the presenters because they can actually SEE their own presentations, and hear/read how the audience reacts to them. This is an invaluable part of improving one’s own presenting ability that gets so often overlooked. But most importantly, it allows people in attendance, turn around and help spread the message to others who aren’t attending, in person or virtually. If you see an amazing presentation, having access to archived live streams allows you to pass it along to other educators, administrators and colleagues that might never have seen them… or that may really NEED to see them.

One last piece before I wrap this up. I’ve been talking mostly about uStream, because that’s where the comfort zone is right now for many of us who hang around the cutting edge. We’ve been doing it for close to a year now and have figured out most of the in’s and out’s of the process. But if you really want to surf the razor’s edge, you need to cut out the umbilical cord. That’s right, no USB cables, no computer, no WiFi required. Sites like Qik.com and CometNow.com enable you to create and broadcast live video streams from your cell phone. While I haven’t been able to try out Qik (Nokia only), I’ve experimented with CometNow several times and have been very very impressed with the quality of its mobile streams. I’m planning on doing some serious broadcasting from NECC using my mobile device. I have about three or four extra batteries and I plan on bringing them all to the conference!

Whether you’ll be in attendance or attending virtually, it promises to be a very exciting conference experience this year!

18 Comments

kmulford
6/2/2008

Steve, you just made my day!

I’ve been grumpily lurking in the background of all of the excited tweets about NECC because San Antonio just isn’t in the budget this summer.

After reading your post, I have a new outlook. I actually have started browsing the sessions already, amikng some of those “tough decisions”…

Thanks, too, for the info on Qik and CometNow. I was shopping for a camera, and now I might just look into using my cell…

Nancy
6/2/2008

Just because we ‘can’, does not mean we ’should’.

I for one, am NOT a fan of streamnig presentations. Why? Because most ‘producers’ aren’t equipped to stream live. Yes, we have the equipment, yes, we have the software, but in this case 1 plus 1 does not equal 2.

Here are some of my experiences viewing live/recorded video:
1. The ‘producer’ sets up the camera once and never checks it again, so if the presenter has moved and is off camera, all we see is an empty space and a voice off somewhere.
2. The ‘producer’ attempts to follow all movement and dialogue and the camera jumps from presenter to screen (more on that one later) to participant back to presenter and somewhere along the way we’ve got a clear shot of the carpet.
3. The ‘producer’ attempts to record the presentation software (PowerPoint, Keynote, internet, etc.) not realizing that the viewers CAN NOT SEE ANY OF IT! (yes, I know Steve, you hate when I use all caps, but I figured it was warranted in this case! LOL). This has got to be my BIGGEST complaint about live streaming. Possible solution: multiple screens – 1 ‘producer’ records the presenter (and follows his/her movements), 1 ‘producer’ records the audience, and 1 ‘producer’ has a close-up of the screen.

Better yet, I’d prefer to have a Slideshare (or similiar app) and listen to a presenter say, ‘Slide 1 – blah blah blah’, ‘Slide 2 – yada yada yada’, and I can click thru the slides as the presenter presents.

Perhaps the ‘next big thing’ could be the workshops on how to effectively set up streaming video so that it’s actually relevant to the audience.

Rob Letcher
6/2/2008

I, for one, am a huge fan of UStream and related sites. I don’t have the time – nor budget – to get to all of the conferences I want to. Even when the video is bad, I learn a tremendous amount. My favorite live streaming moment most recently was while viewing a Will Richardson stream where teh back channel distracted a co-presenter so much that it in itself became a part of the session. http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/280193
So – please – stream away for those of us not able to make it to NECC!! Poor quality is better than none!

Rob Letcher’s most recent blog post.. Three words that engage disaffected students

Steve Dembo
6/2/2008

@kmulford Your comment made me think of an interesting idea. I wonder whether we need a wiki page somewhere, where people who are attending virtually can REQUEST streams of specific presentations? Or a list of presentations where people can mark if they are going to be streaming it out. That way people don’t double up, wasting bandwidth. Hmm… Gotta mull that one over.

@Nancy Heh, I’ll forgive the caps I TOTALLY understand. I’ve had some people stream sessions of mine where the bulk of the time the camera was on an empty lectern as I wandered the stage. However, I do think that’s part of the learning process. People that make those mistakes generally learn from them and do it differently the next time. And I couldn’t agree more about the slides. Combining the live action with a slideshare of the presentation is really the best of all worlds.

@Rob Amen. So long as the audio comes clean, it’s worth it.

andy carvin
6/2/2008

If you wanted to get really sophisticated with it, you could have a copy of a presenter’s powerpoint and websites they’re sharing on the laptop that’s doing the streaming, so if you use a service like Mogulus.com, you can switch between the video of the presenter and the stuff they’re showing on their screen. Personally, I just want to be able to listen in, since I can’t attend this year, so I don’t care if the video quality stinks. I just want to hear the conversation.

Wish I could be there; otherwise I’d be qikstreaming like a madman.

andy carvin’s most recent blog post.. A Camel Eating Cantaloupe

Stephanie Sandifer
6/2/2008

I do think it would be helpful to have some centralized page to organize who is broadcasting, and when and where (Ustream, mogulus, etc.) to help “viewers” find those broadcasts.

I also agree with the comments about quality. This past March I had the opportunity to do some live streaming for a local event that featured David Warlick as the keynote speaker. I wrote up my tech notes in this blog post: http://www.ed421.com/?p=433

I am sure there are several options for broadcasting quality live video stream and it might be a good idea to try to collect those options/technical instructions somewhere for everyone to access.

Stephanie Sandifer’s most recent blog post.. Catch the Fever: Viral Professional Development – Add your voice!

JackieB
6/2/2008

UStream will be the next big splash? Funny, I’ve already come to take it for granted. I assumed that most of the sessions I want to attend virtually will be available.

Strange how the “new” becomes commonplace.

JackieB’s most recent blog post.. Dimensional Fun

Steve Dembo
6/2/2008

@JackieB Heh, it’s a big jump to go from 0 sessions live video streamed last year, to having most of the sessions you want to attend virtually being streamed!

Oh, and for the record, I wouldn’t pigeonhole it to uStream. There are so many other options for different situations. Qik and CometNow for mobiles, Veodia for higher quality and for SecondLife, and so on…

@Andy Love the idea. Obviously that’d require the presenter to coordinate with the ’streamer’ prior to the event. But clearly doable. Hmm…. thinking that something really needs to be created for this.

Steve Dembo’s most recent blog post.. What’s next for NECC?

Sheryl A. McCoy
6/2/2008

I agree, the video streaming is reaching critical mass as a “new” mode of communication that will transform the way people view conferences.

I have watched various presenters , using UStream improve greatly over time. The first ones I saw were weak, but my first one will probably be weak. Weak or not, these presentations serve as an inspiration for me. I get it! I see the need to stream presentations, and I thank them for their risk taking abilities.

If you wait until your work is perfect, you will never do anything for fear of making mistakes.

As teachers, we know that making mistakes is the most important part of learning. Make an effort, refocus the effort, make another effort, etc until the improved effort meets the final standards we set for our work.

Jill
6/3/2008

Video streaming is the new mode of communication? I think that might be a stretch. How about having the ability to virtually participate in sessions using MUVEs like Second Life? That might be a little more cutting edge but only a little…

Steve
6/4/2008

@Jill Heh, I don’t think I said that it was a new mode of communication. That it was going to be the hot topic for NECC this year and become adopted by a critical mass.

Oh, and by the way. By using Veodia as the streaming technology instead of uStream or any of hte others, you can can actually stream it directly into Second Life so people CAN virtually participate I’ll be doing a short presentation on this a week from today at the DEN HQ in second life!

John Thompson
6/5/2008

Sounds good but what will the impact on conference organizers like ISTE if conference “attenders” don’t have to pay a registration fee to view the conference presentations? Couple that with the impact of the rising price of gas for cars and planes and you start to see that conference attendance is poised to take a big hit.

Steve Dembo
6/6/2008

@John
Now that’s a great point. Interestingly, we had similar discussions when podcasting became mainstream and many sessions were broadcast that way. While there may be some people who would opt to just attend virtually for that reason, I think there’s much more to the conference than just the sessions. The vendor area is obviously a huge draw, but to many people the best part of the conference is the networking you get to do there. I spoke to many people last year who said they could have gotten a ton out of the conference even if they hadn’t gone to a single session.

So not advocating that we eliminate presentations, but suffice to say I think it may actually do more to advertise the conference than drive people away!

Steve Dembo’s most recent blog post.. Lose weight with the Wii Fit? The numbers don’t lie.

John Thompson
6/6/2008

@Steve
And you raise a great point, too. Increased participation via streamed sessions might make more people aware of NECC (there are still many, many folks who don’t know about it), which could actually increase conference registrations. Or conferences could offer a reduced registration fee that would be “just” for streamed (live or archived) presentations. BTW, what’s to prevent anyone from taping presentations they attend and then uploading the video to an Internet site? With some planning and organization, conference goers themselves could make the matter moot if they “crowd source” the taping themselves. As for me, I’m convuluted on the topic of whether streamed presentations will help or hurt actual physical conference attendance. But with gas and airline prices spiraling out of sight and videos becoming ubiquitous on the Internet, conference organizers need to consider some alternatives to the traditional way of running their conferences.

Catherine L. Nelson
6/7/2008

I think the love affair with twitter is over-but back channels of any kind will be the rage for NECC. I already have friends asking me if I’ll ustream some of the sessions I attend. I said i may not make it to a single one, just sit somewhere and network, but if they’s like to participate, Ustream could serve. So if I had to say what will be ever so popular this year, I’d say back channels. Any kind. Great post Steve.

Plugged In to NECC. I hope… | Onionskin
6/9/2008

[...] sure this will come to a maddening cacophony in the next two weeks — until I ran across this post by Steve Dembo a week or so [...]

Luke Allen
6/17/2008

Live streams and backchannels…great for those of us who can’t make the conferences, but if folks are just streaming away at every opportunity, what does this do for the presenters and any copyright issues that may arise over their presentations. Any copyright lawyers in the house. (You have no idea how it pains me to say that!)

Luke Allen’s most recent blog post.. FIREFOX 3!

EdStreamTV is going live! - Teach42
6/25/2008

[...] It’s no secret that I think streaming video is going to be huge at NECC. I’ve already blogged about it once. A thread that I started on the NECC Ning site caused some major conversation. This led to an ISTE [...]

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