This is the one thing technology can’t solve in the discussion - humans are different. I find conferences intensely draining. I love people but I don’t like crowds - I grew up in the remote mountains. But I realize I’m not everyone and I recognize that hybrid events and work places are probably the best way to ensure everyone gets to work and participate in the way they feel most effective. I am glad that the extrovert hegemony has been cracked this year, but I also realize as humans we should figure out how to assemble and collaborate in a way that is most comfortable for everyone, then everyone will get so much more out of the interaction.

> Online events give me loads of fatigue. In-person events energize me.

Completely opposite for me, and I bet other introverts or people with social anxiety/low social mana.

Small talk and the like is tiring, but getting to talk about your pet project with others who grasp it's depth is a rare and exciting thing, and there is no denying that in person communication flows the best.

Speak for yourself. I'm not so much an introvert as a near-total loner. I find in-person conferences incredibly interesting and valuable for the ability to spend a week nerding out on technical topics with new people. Online conferences do absolutely nothing for me.

I've described them as a geek spa or fantasy nerd camp. It doesn't have much to do with the act of delivering talks in-person on online; that's the the mechanism for a very special type of social interaction that is hard (or impossible) to replicate online.

Another socially anxious introvert here. I miss in person events so much, digital conventions don’t compare even remotely (please don’t talk to me though).