Biju Chacko <[email protected]> wrote:
But why is top posting a problem? Its an archaic and arbitrary dictum that
is largely meaningless today.
Not everyone thinks so.
Groan. Not this again. There are very good reasons for NOT
top-posting, to do with the way humans process information....
More importantly, a list needs to be consistent. One *can* make sense
of a top-posted message five levels down, but when some contributors
top-post and others bottom-post, it can be a three-ring circus trying
to figure out who said what when.
In my previous avatar as a mailing list moderator, I was fairly
zealous about slapping down top posters. I don't give a damn anymore.
I too have abandoned my former fussiness about it in the lists I
moderate, but people who want a response from me really need to get
their ducks in a row -- chronologically -- if they expect a reply.
I'd politely suggest that we should stop pandering to a few old
timers like Udhay, Eugen and I and soften the rule to "Bottom
posting is preferred but not required on this list" if that gets a
few of the lurkers posting.
If it works, and if you don't mind us "old-timers" declining to
participate in garbled threads, more power to you. Personally, I'd
vote for consistency, with a preference for bottom-posting. Mix it up,
and you'll miss my input as I vote with my delete key.
* * *
Oh, and those who don't remember me, "Hi!" I've been in deep lurk mode
for several years now, but am trying to get out more. I'm not Indian,
nor have I yet been able to visit, but rather am one of the strays
Udhay has picked up along the way for some inscrutable reason of his
own. I reside in Central Florida, United States, and would delight to
meet any silklister that comes within shouting distance.
Regards,
Bruce
