>[log in to unmask] on 12/17/98 10:06:10 PM
>
>Please respond to [log in to unmask]
>
>To:   [log in to unmask]
>cc:    (bcc: Andreas Schmidt/HI/CSC)
>Subject:  Upside down
>
>I'm fairly new to this group and I've noticed that many participants
>prefer to locate their responses below the message to which they are
>responding. This is pretty rare in the other groups I read.
>Is their any particular reason for this? It's no big deal but it makes
>reading more difficult - or is that just my opinion?
>
Stan gave the perfect example of why 'reply after posting' is best - it
supports commenting on what you had to say point by point, whereas
replying above the posting does not facilitate this.

Also, chronological order seems more logical to me.

The comment about having to read the whole of the previous posting to
get to the reply is only valid if the replier hasn't learned to snip.

Which is to say, remove as much of the previous posting as can be done
without losing its meaning, or the context of the reply, entirely.

Until M$ Outlook, 'reply above posting' was very rare, but Outlook seems
to give this as its 'default' (though you can perfectly well move the
cursor down and reply after the posting).

I tend to regard anyone who replies above the posting as a 'Johnny-come-
lately-know-nothing' (but one who can learn).

I'm appalled if there are products out there that won't even *let* you
reply after the posting - such products cannot possibly be RFC-
compliant.
--
Roy Brown               Phone : (01684) 291710     Fax : (01684) 291712
Affirm Ltd              Email : [log in to unmask]
The Great Barn, Mill St 'Have nothing on your systems that you do not
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