A Refelction on Academic Conferences....

I've been to a few academic conferences now, presented in a mock one, and am presenting in one for writing centers this fall, so I'm trying to figure out the "proper way" to present at these things.

One thing i noticed at the early modern one on Friday is that some of the speakers spoke really fast. It was hard for me to follow sometimes because of that. I know this is something I often do and need to prepare myself for so that my listeners can understand what I am saying and actually take something away from it.
Another thing is that the material is often really dense, all because it is based on continuing research and literally entering into and academic conversation that is already going on. This can be very intimidating for students and colleagues who are not familiar with the material but want to learn more. But how do you balance the two without dumbing down your argument too much that it loses its relevance??? I found this to be problematic for myself and my fellow classmates when we did our mock academic conference.
It is also really hard for people who have a hard time with auditory learning and focus. I like the use of handouts for long quotes and stuff like that, but why not include the argument and the main points as well as a sort of outline to help the audience follow what you are saying? I often got lost in the argument and couldn't retrace back becuase I had no text in front of me to go back to. Iunderstand this is what the question and answer session afterwads is for, but I would feel kind of silly asking "hey, what was your argument again?" So how do you address this area of concern? I'm sure I'm not the only one that has experienced this. Many times the person/people presenting will have their book present or information on where to get the article that is published/in the process of getting published, but why not make the talk itself more productive? Maybe its just me. I'm curious to know how others feel about this and, to professor maruca specifically, how do you or would you address these concerns?

I am really thinking about this kind of stuff becuase I am becoming more and more involved in the realm of academia and want to know the proper conduct for presenting and interacting with the audience in a way that increases their understanding. I feel that the purpose of these conferences is to spread knowledge not only to those specifically interested in the area of study, but to others as well. There might be moore support and turn out for these things (especially by students) if it was less intimidating for them to participate.

These are just some of my thoughts on the academic conference. please share your ideas and experiences!