[GRLUG] GRLUG meetings

[john-thomas richards]

On Sat, May 05, 2007 at 12:26:40PM -0400, Bob Kline wrote:
> On 5/5/07, Godwin <geektoyz at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >...hmm, I wasn't aware of the "top post" issue.   I bet this is
> >worse...(deleting the whole email and leaving just my response)..
> >Haaaa!!!!
> 
> I doubt many were,  but it seems to be a sin
> almost as bad as  including an image in your
> e-mail.  In another active chat group I participate
> in people do both,  and no one has ever popped a
> blood vessel.  It appears that someone needs
> a real hobby.   Or maybe a dog.

Deleting the context of one's reply is probably worse than top-posting
as it requires much more effort to discover the context of the
response.  I think Godwin was poking fun knowingly.

> But you pose what for some will be a major
> irritation now.  Being the only message,
> is it on the top or the bottom?  Is this of
> greater or less consequence than how many
> angels can dance on the head of a pin?
> 
> What's next?  A moderator?

(Thank you for not top-posting.)

This issue (top-posting) is not merely an issue of preference.  For
continued, useful dialog to occur we must all agree to communicate in
the same manner.  Many years ago netiquette guidelines were established
to help improve communication.  The issue of top-posting is one of
those guidelines.  If one person fails to follow this and his posts
become laborious to follow (why did he write that?  <page down>  oh.
<page up> is that what he said?  <page down/page down>  oh, i remember
now. <page up/page up>) communication becomes difficult.  Time is a
limited commodity.  Unlike economics, time is a zero sum game.  For
example, the time I have spent explaining the problem with top-posting
is gone from me forever.  However, I hope it is made up by increased
efficiency in reading mail.

In this post you can *see* the benefits of following netiquette.
Godwin posted a comment to which you replied and I replied to your
post.  One can read my post and easily discern what prompted my
comments and what prompted your comments.  The conversation flows in a
natural order, not an upside down one.

BTW, angels do not dance.  Well, they dance but not on the head of a
pin; they dance on the *point* of the pin.  Sixteen at a time.
-- 
john-thomas
------
As far as I'm concerned, 'whom' is a word that was invented to make
everyone sound like a butler.
Calvin Trillin, writer (1935- )