Q. How will a virtual conference work? Do I need to show up at a certain time?

A. VITAL '99 will last for 3 weeks. A virtual conference is modeled after the more traditional and well known concept of a face-to face conference. It features keynote speaker segments, workshops, cafes for informal chat and networking, a Cybrary with a full resource center, an interactive participant directory, an open space forum where participants can create and facilitate their own discussion topics. All materials gathered and posted in VITAL '99 will remain accessible throughout the entire event. Features are scheduled over a period of time such as days or a week, instead of hours to allow participants from all over the globe time to access and respond. There will also be a Help Desk available at all times.

Q. The conference starts on September 27th, 1999. Can people join the online activities after the 27th?

A. Yes! VITAL '99 will be ongoing from day one...and...there will be new topics, new presenters, new sessions, and new featured exhibitors all the way until the end. Plus, the full proceedings will be available onsite at all times. It will be easy to catch up and join in a discussion even if it started days or weeks ago.

Q. Will I be able to introduce my own discussion thread?

A. The main program area is a completely participant driven conference space, modeled after Open Space, which is a large group meeting process. The way it works is that anyone may start a discussion thread anytime. Those that start a topic will facilitate and moderate that thread to the end of that discussion. Experienced online facilitator mentors will be available if anyone worries about their ability to run a discussion topic, however, there will be written guidelines available as well.

Q. Will you use a variety of media such as AudioConferencing, or Streaming Video?

A. The main media used is asynchronous conferencing where someone starts a conversation by posting in writing and then everyone that arrives can respond. Posts are made in order of time posted so the result is much like a real dialogue. Discussion items are presented by subject and the person featured so it's automatically organized and archived as well. We will however be introducing other media such as real audio and possibly video streaming. Our software allows uploading of images and other media files, so basically anything you can do on the web you can do here!

Q. Do we need a sound card? Will I need RealAudio to participate?

A. The conference area supports all media types that a user can experience on the Web, so attendees may post audio and video files if they desire. If multimedia files are posted, you will need a sound card to experience them. The recommended format of multimedia files posted at the conference is RealAudio and RealVideo from Progressive Networks. You can download a free RealMedia player from their web site.

Q. Will sessions be "live" or pre-recorded?

A. Sessions are entered via everyone's own keyboard into a common conference space at convenience of time and place of the participant. Participants interact with keynote and workshop leaders in the same playing field and in fact have a unique opportunity to dialogue directly with the experts and other participants.

Q. What are some guidelines for appropriate participation in a Virtual Conference?

A. It's as simple as this: be thoughtful to other participants. We are building a community of communities here. We expect many diverse perspectives, experiences, and insights. This will enrich our discussions and overall learning over the course of VITAL '99. Be yourself, share your knowledge, and have fun. The only thing that the your hosts will not accept is hostile and obscene language, but we're confident that participants will use their good judgment and expect this environment to be friendly and supportive to everyone involved.

Q. What if I am interested in this topic, but haven't been involved with Interactive training and learning before?

A. Anyone who is interested in joining the dialogue on knowledge in action is encouraged to attend. VITAL '99 will bring together a diverse group of participants from many fields and with varying experiences around our topic. Besides having the opportunity to converse with leaders on the topic, current periodicals and resources will be available in our Resource Center. The Resource Center will continually be updated throughout the conference.

Q. Who will be able to access VITAL '99 and see our conversations?

A. VITAL '99 takes place entirely in a password protected web site. You must register to receive an ID and Password, and only those that have registered will be allowed into the site. However, VITAL '99 is a publicly advertised event on the web. Invitations and press releases were released all over the world and anyone who registers can access.

Q. For those who could not "attend" a particular presentation, will it be recorded somewhere for playback?

A. Because it is on the web over three weeks, participants have ample opportunity to "attend" any aspect of the program they want. This isn't realistic because so much content is developed in the environment and you choose to participate in your specific areas of interest. But as a participant, you will have full access to the event archive for six weeks which is usually plenty of time to go back and catch up on areas that you didn't have time to attend during the conference.

Q. What is required in order to be able to participate?

A. You need a browser and access to the WWW. The minimum browser required is Netscape 3.1 or Internet Explore 3.02 or higher. If you use AOL, version 3.0 or higher.

Q. I don't want to miss anything, so what times do I need to be at my computer?

A. The conference will begin on 9 a.m. on September the 27th and end at 5 p.m. on October 15, 1999 (EST). The entire event is asynchronous (unless specially noted) so there is no specific time where an attendee has to be at their computer. Information posted at the event site by a keynoter at 12:00 noon will look exactly the same to someone who does not check in until 4:00. The only difference being that the later you check in the more responses you may see from other attendees who have added their comments to an area within the conference.

Q. If I have to be out of the office one day will I just have to miss the activities on that day or is there some archive I can access?

A. You won't miss anything. The conferencing software we are using remembers what you have read and will identify all new material in the conference areas when you return. If you cannot be on-line for awhile, events that take place while you are off-line will appear as new items when you return to the virtual conference.

Q. I understand that there will be an open workshop where we can discuss topics with each other. How will we interact with the keynote speakers?

A. The keynote speakers will present and work out of their own conference areas. They will be easily accessible from the virtual conference "home".

Q. Will the time difference between countries affect my participation?

A. No, the conferencing environment is asynchronous. The keynoters will be on-line over the course of three days, allowing everyone a chance to interact. The workshops will be active all week, so no matter where you are, you can participate at a time that is convenient for you.

Q. I cannot receive sound due to a firewall (or because I do not have a sound card). Will I still be able to participate?

A. Absolutely. The primary interaction for the event takes place in a text based conferencing area where attendees discuss topics and debate issues. If you have an Internet connection and a standard Web browser you will have the opportunity to participate.

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