ISTE12 and the idea of a flipped conference

I first mentioned it at the karaoke party on the rooftop of the Andaz hotel.  "I just feel like the whole passive-audience format is a bit dated, especially with all this talk of flipped instruction".  I should have known better than to approach the subject when everyone was more engaged with the person singing Aerosmith's "Dream On".  But I would argue (and bet money) that the majority of attendees probably felt something a bit different than ISTE conferences of past: that there was much more learning, exposure, networking, experiencing in most every space of ISTE but one - the sessions.  That's not to say that the presenters of these sessions were not qualified nor did they fail to bring pertinent information.  But when you are in a room (classroom?) of two hundred, just how much information can you walk away with?  The presenters for the most part, zipped through their myriad of apps, sites, etc. while most rushed to download the app (discouraged, btw) on their iPad and check it out.  You see, this format of delivering ninety-nine apps in sixty minutes worked when all we had was a yellow ledger (or handout) and pen to jot them down (ok, laptops, but we weren't trying to download software during the sessions).  The attendee would make quick notes like, "Yes! Use this " or "Not for me/my class".  But now, it's all about experiencing it right there and then.  We want to play with it, evaluate it, critique it, share it, tweet about it, and determine its worth all the while surrounded by our peers who may have valuable input.  Perhaps this is where someone can insert the idea of a flipped conference.  I haven't ventured far enough into the world of flipped classrooms to form an opinion, but it's an idea, anyway.
Conferences like ISTE should re-evaluate the format in which the information is disseminated to the 21st century (I'm going to stop using this term very soon) educator.  Much like our learners in our classrooms, we have moved away from being a passive receiver of information.  If you witnessed the poster sessions  run by children, the various playgrounds, live theaters, and various other "lounges", this is where the action was taking place.  I'm not suggesting tossing out the baby with the bathwater, but the way we obtain information is now dependent on the type of material we are gathering.  Conferences will always be essential to PD, however, they must evolve in order to keep us engaged.