> > That we are not reflects our inability to retain, not our inability to attract > (assuming that we are not completely refreshing the IETF attendance every three > or four years). Should not be rocket science to follow up with some newcomers to > find out why they only attend once and never come back. Hi, I am one of those non-returning newcomers, so maybe I can reply with my own motivations. I came to Maastricht, few meetings ago because I had some specific interest (and, I admit, I was a bit curios of seeing a meeting live, but that was not the main motivation... Just the icing on the cake). I did not return (yet, I think I'll do) because I work in the University, so scientific conferences are more natural an environment for me. Also, depending on the location, a 1-week participation is quite expensive (not more expensive than your average conference, but expensive nevertheless) and since funding are pretty scarce, coming to a meeting (with my regret) is something that I'll do when I'll have some very strong motivation. Add to this that you can do most of interaction via e-mail and can remotely participate via streaming + jabber and you can understand that it is unlikely to have the strict necessity of being "on place." So, to summarize Q: Why did you come? A: Because I had a very specific interest Q: Why did you not return? A: Because the necessity of being at meeting does not compensate for the cost. Also I work at University, so I participate more to scientific conference than to engineering meetings. (Also, teaching duties do not help) Q: Do you plan to return? A: Yes, I do, maybe fairly soon, but I have no precise plan yet. Riccardo