Hecklers (was Possible future talk; interest?)

[James Knott]

Meng Cheah wrote:
> James Knott wrote:
>> Meng Cheah wrote:
>>  
>>> Richard Weait wrote:
>>>    
>>>> On Sat, 2009-05-16 at 12:26 -0400, Meng Cheah wrote:
>>>>  
>>>>      
>>>>> Richard Weait wrote:
>>>>>           
>>>>>> On Fri, 2009-05-15 at 15:53 -0400, James Knott wrote:
>>>>>>                 
>>>>>>> Talks at TLUG meetings tend to be "intermittent" because of all the
>>>>>>> hecklers.  ;-)
>>>>>>>                         
>>>>>> Is the heckling one of the benefits of TLUG meetings?         
>>>>>>           
>>>>> I thought they were contributors to the talk :-)
>>>>>             
>>>> Heckling presenters at TLUG is mentioned once in a while on this list
>>>> and during and after presentations.  I guesstimate that "attendee
>>>> contributions" at TLUG are two to four times more frequent than the
>>>> other dozen LUGs I've attended in the last year. Meng Cheah's
>>>> smiley above, suggests that hecklers are not contributing
>>>> to the talk. Would anybody like to discuss the place of heckling at
>>>> TLUG meetings? Is the heckling one of the benefits of TLUG
>>>> meetings?  Is it a sign of
>>>> rapt attention and engagement in the presentation?  Is it a sign of
>>>> respect for the speaker?  Is it a benefit to the LUG in general, to
>>>> the
>>>> attendee contributor, to the other attendees and to the speaker?   
>>>>       
>>> Robert Brockway's talk on backups is the first meeting I have attended
>>> for a long time.
>>> This absence is not due to heckling. Since I have not been attending
>>> the meetings, I am
>>> in no position to judge the present trend of meetings.
>>>
>>> If only questions are allowed, it will make for a dull meeting.
>>> And how do you allow a question and not allow a counterpoint or an
>>> illustration/experience from the trenches?
>>> That is what I meant as contributions, from a diverse range of
>>> experiences and sets of skills.
>>>
>>>     
>>
>> Some speakers request all questions and comments be held until after the
>> presentation.  That format works.  At TLUG, I often found the heckling
>> trashed the presentation.  Is that what you want?
>>   
> Since you asked, "No" :-)
>
> You stated:
> "In some meetings I've attended, the method was to raise your hand and
> the presenter responded when convenient. The audience members *DO NOT*
> speak, until acknowledged by the presenter."
>
> I too have witnessed this and it is what I do when I have a question.
>
> At the beginning of his talk, Robert Brockway laid out the format.
> He welcomed questions throughout the talk as he preferred it that way.
>
> It is up to TLUG to define the format of the presentation and of
> course, the presenter.
> Mostly, I believe it is up to the members/audience to practice
> courtesy and self restraint.
>
> Of course, there will be occasional incidents of (over)enthusiasm :-)
>

Some presenters do welcome questions during the presentation.  I don't
have a problem with that.  The problem occurs when some feel they have a
right to some outburst, without considering others.  If questions are
permitted, it shouldn't be a "free for all".

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