[Coco] Etiquette Question

[William Astle]

On 12-03-19 09:14 AM, Aaron Wolfe wrote:
> Personally, I try to just go with the flow.  If the thread is being
> top posted, I top post, if people are doing bottom posting, I bottom
> post, and if people are doing inline responses (my "favorite", i
> guess) then I do that.
>
> Regardless of what technique is being used, it becomes much worse if
> someone breaks the working conventions in any given thread.  On the
> other hand, any technique is pretty readable if its used consistently
> within the thread.

This. Overall, though, top vs. inline vs. bottom is much less disruptive 
than any of our semi-regular flame wars or streams of "me too" type 
posts which are really just clutter (though we don't seem to suffer a 
lot from the "me too" syndrome most of the time).

I've thought about my reasoning when I choose top/inline/bottom and I 
have come up with the following:

1. If I am replying to a specific question or a series of questions, I 
reply below each question, inline. In this case, trimming non-relevant 
text in the original message is a must. In general, a Q&A abd 
conversation fall in this category.

2. If I am replying to a message whose contents is critical to 
understanding my reply, I usually "bottom post" after timming 
non-relevant text. In general, this is exactly point (1) but with a 
single point being replied to.

3. If my reply is only loosely related to the message I am replying to, 
or the original message is only referenced in passing or tangentially, I 
usually "top post" if the relevant passages are somewhat long. Again, 
tirmming non-relevant text is a good idea though I do forget 
occasionally when top posting. Sometimes, if the original message is 
short enough, I'll bottom post in this case too.

4. Sometimes, depending on the narrative structure of my reply, a top 
post is indicated for clarity even if it breaks existing convention 
within a thread.

Top posting is analogous to including the original message(s) as an 
attachment. Attachments are generally not noticed unless referenced in 
the text of a message or if the reader specifically looks for them. 
Inline and bottom posting make the original material more obvious. In 
some cases, the former is sufficient or clearer and in some cases the 
latter is.