At most of these conferences many of the attendees DO go out to the local bars after the conference hours are over for the day. I assume at that point "normal" bar behaviour is OK?
To be honest, I've sat here staring into space for a while trying to think of a good answer, and the best I can come up with is: At a tech conference, leave it up to the women make the first move, if there's going to be any moves made. That's by far the safest bet for making everyone feel the most comfortable, even if it means missed opportunities.
I'm more than open to debating this though, it's a super tough issue. I've never been in an awkward spot at a conference like this, but I've definitely experienced it with women in my undergrad Computer Science program (both personally and as a third party).
>when a group of people head out to the bars after conference hours there is plenty of networking going on. People form business relationships and friendships that continue after the conference. A female shouldn't have to choose to tolerate unwanted sexual advances simply to participate in these bonding experiences.