Laptop Meetings

Since the advent of laptops and the availability of wireless network access, it became usual, that people go to a meeting with their computer. At some point, it was close unfashionable to go to a meeting without laptop. Nowadays, it is not unusual, that a speaker faces a room with ¾ of the audience (if not more) actually starring at their screen and frantically typing on their keyboards. If there is a large audience, the speaker may not care too much. But the image of meetings with 10 people attending, and close to everyone, concentrating on their computers (except maybe the convener) is somewhat disturbing.

Not that I don’t do it. I try for this collaboration meeting to not take my laptop to the meetings, but rather to listen to the talks. Isn’t that what a meeting is for? Most people think that if there is something important in a meeting, they will catch it even while continuing working on their laptops. I am suspicious if this is true. I would also state, that laptops are as addictive to physicists than game boys to 10 year olds: if you have one in front of you, it is very hard to ignore it. Check your e-mail, submit jobs... surf on google earth, read the newspaper etc. I am only talking about myself – other people certainly manage to do some real work and listen carefully to talks at the same time! Are laptops those fabulous tools providing an increase in productivity?

Let me ask a stupid question: if meetings are so boring, that we prefer working on our computers during a meeting, why do we meet? Is there something going wrong in the way we are working together? Have transparencies and power-point killed communication in meetings? Or did I simply miss a workshop as Gordon attended?