We've had similar experiences at our BlogMeets in Hamburg. Our first meeting was at a bar with wifi. We decided we didn't like the distraction, and have gone without connectivity at our subsequent get-togethers.

There's something about laptop notetaking that distracting enough in a conference setting. If someone is paying more attention to what they think about what is being presented, so they can pontificate on it -- or even just report on it -- with sufficient quality for a public blog, then they are, in my opinion, taking that distraction right up to the border of rudeness.

My preference is to take notes, then blog on what I've sat in on during lunch or in the evening. This, IMHO, is more polite, and it also provides time for the content to sink in and allow a refined response.

Who really needs real-time reporting of most meetings and conferences, other than the ego of the reporter?

Realtimeblogging from a conference makes sense if you invite blogreaders into the event. But then the technique should adapt completle.

Boards with postits would be electronic boards and maybe the blogger ought to be perfect in feeding his blog. So he won't experience a difference between paper and pen to a keyboard.

Everything else is in fact nonsense.