At 3:17 PM +0800 1/2/02, Greg Hosking wrote:
> There are many reasons to put the message you're responding to
first, such as
> * It encourages the recipient to *read* the original message before
reading the reply. (Not that this usually works!)
* It encourages the sender to reduce the message they're replying to
down to the relevant bits. Thus saving bandwidth and brevity.
so, the netiquette of replying after the original is to encourage the two
items of netiquette detailed above? hmmm...
Not just that. It also makes your part in the conversation easier to
follow, and saves time for the reader(s) of your response. It's
generally accepted practice to put your response after the email
you're replying to, and to trim the original down just to the
relevant points.
Bandwidth is a consideration, since there are still some people who
pay for internet access by the hour, but it's more to do with not
wasting the recipients' time trying to decipher your post, and figure
out what part of the initial post you're responding to.
It's all covered in RFC 1855, which has all sorts of useful tips to
do with email and mailing lists. You can find a copy at
<http://www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc1855.html>
Hope this helps,
Anthony
--
Anthony Briggs, Computercare -- <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
ABN 68 449 029 608, <http://www.computer-care.com.au>
Tel: 9286 1034 Mob: 0417 186 546
