I am a countywide bicycle and pedestrian coordinator and may have a scheduling conflict that may not allow me the time off from work to attend this conference in person during the week. To answer Elly's initial questions:
-A live webcast of the entire conference would definitely be useful to me; with the exception of participating in discussion, I can still benefit from viewing the exchange of perspectives from participants as if I attended in person. Although text-based reporting is great to have (perhaps in addition to the webcast), I would prefer that it not be the primary medium for the virtual conference.
-Yes, I can use the internet to follow the conference
-I really like the idea of having online discussion; however, it might not be successful unless aren't enough participants; depending on the number of comments received from online participants, there is the question of whether there be a volunteer/staff person to read/filter online comments for presentation to participants in Portland; perhaps consider the option to call in with questions/comments for discussion
-Given that the virtual conference is set up in a manner that is straightforward and provides participants with a 'hassle-free' way to keep up with the what has happened at the conference, I would not have a problem with paying a registration fee. The amount I'd think reasonable for virtual registration fee would depend on the setup of the virtual conference.