Don Howe

Is there a 'proper' way to reply to a post?

When there is a very long list of replies plus diverse discussions and your
reply deals only with the original posting do you insert your response
directly below the original post?

If there is a long list of replies do you insert separate responses next to
the replies that you are answering or do you compile your responses and post
them at the end of the list?

If we all followed a given path long threads would be a lot easier to
follow.

Your thoughts. Please.

Keith Willshaw

"Don Howe" <> wrote in message
news:ucOjc.295201$oR5.266332@pd7tw3no...
    > Is there a 'proper' way to reply to a post?

There are many ways but common sense is the
guiding principle

    > When there is a very long list of replies plus diverse discussions and
your
    > reply deals only with the original posting do you insert your response
    > directly below the original post?

Indeed else its difficult to follow the arguments

    > If there is a long list of replies do you insert separate responses next
to
    > the replies that you are answering or do you compile your responses and
post
    > them at the end of the list?

I post my replies immediately the text I am replying
to and remove any superfluous material , indicating
such editing thus

<snip>

    > If we all followed a given path long threads would be a lot easier to
    > follow.

Indeed

    > Your thoughts. Please.


See Above.

Keith

JamesStep

    >Is there a 'proper' way to reply to a post?

Clarity and brevity are the keys. If your post is made
in response to what someone else has written, include
a quote so folks know what you're responding to, but
keep the quote *brief*.

Some folks debate whether quoted materials should come
at the beginning or at the end of your post. Putting the
quote first helps people to know right away what you are
responding to. However, only do that for brief quotes, as
no one wants to scroll thru 20 lines of quoted text before
getting to your reply.

If for some reason you feel it's necessary to include a
long quote from a previous post, put it at the end. That
way it's there if people want to read it, but they don't
have to scroll thru it before getting to your message.


    >If there is a long list of replies
    >do you insert separate responses...
    >or do you compile your responses

Depends on the situation. If you can compile a number of
answers into a single paragraph or list, then that certainly
simplifies your post. But if doing that would make your
answers hard to follow, then separate responses would
be the way to go.


    >If we all followed a given path...

In *moderated* newsgroups (in which a moderator has to
approve a message before it's posted) it's possible to
enforce general posting guidelines, but in unmoderated groups
like this one you'll never get folks to even agree on the best
method, and even if you did there would be no way to enforce
it.

James

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Alohacyberian

"Don Howe" <> wrote in message
news:ucOjc.295201$oR5.266332@pd7tw3no...
    > Is there a 'proper' way to reply to a post?
    > When there is a very long list of replies plus diverse discussions and your
    > reply deals only with the original posting do you insert your response
    > directly below the original post?
Yes, the proper way is to leave the part of the message to which you are
responding, intact.
    > If there is a long list of replies do you insert separate responses next
to
    > the replies that you are answering or do you compile your responses and
post
    > them at the end of the list?
    > If we all followed a given path long threads would be a lot easier to
    > follow.

It sounds as if you are troubled by long threads. You can solve that problem
by setting your newsreader so that only the posts you have not read will
appear when you return. I have mine (Outlook) configured so that when I leave
a newsgroup, all messages are automatically marked "read" and deleted so that
I won't see them when I return to the newsgroup; I'll only see the new ones.
If, however, I do want to go back and read the old ones, it's just a few
clicks of the mouse on "View" and "Show all Messages" and voila - the all
re-appear. Then when I want to return to just the unread messages, I again
Click on "View", but this time on "Hide read messages". KM

Don Howe

"alohacyberian" <> wrote in message
news:Wh_jc.33559$_...
    > "Don Howe" <> wrote in message
    > news:ucOjc.295201$oR5.266332@pd7tw3no...
    > > Is there a 'proper' way to reply to a post?
    > >
    > > When there is a very long list of replies plus diverse discussions and
your
    > > reply deals only with the original posting do you insert your response
    > > directly below the original post?
    > >
    > Yes, the proper way is to leave the part of the message to which you are
    > responding, intact.
    > >
    > > If there is a long list of replies do you insert separate responses
next
    > to
    > > the replies that you are answering or do you compile your responses and
    > post
    > > them at the end of the list?
    > >
    > > If we all followed a given path long threads would be a lot easier to
    > > follow.
    > >
    > It sounds as if you are troubled by long threads. You can solve that
problem
    > by setting your newsreader so that only the posts you have not read will
    > appear when you return. I have mine (Outlook) configured so that when I
leave
    > a newsgroup, all messages are automatically marked "read" and deleted so
that
    > I won't see them when I return to the newsgroup; I'll only see the new
ones.
    > If, however, I do want to go back and read the old ones, it's just a few
    > clicks of the mouse on "View" and "Show all Messages" and voila - the all
    > re-appear. Then when I want to return to just the unread messages, I again
    > Click on "View", but this time on "Hide read messages". KM
    > --
    > (-:alohacyberian:-) At my website there are 3000 live cameras or
    > visit NASA, play games, read jokes, send greeting cards & connect
    > to CNN news, NBA, the White House, Academy Awards or learn all
    > about Hawaii, Israel and more: http://keith.martin.home.att.net/
    > My un-read messages are in 'Bold' which converts to normal when read.

Icono Clast

"Don Howe" <> wrote:
    > When there is a very long list of replies plus diverse discussions and your
    > reply deals only with the original posting do you insert your response
    > directly below the original post?

I post my replies directly under the ones to which I'm responding. If
there're a dozen posts preceding mine (this is the fourth in this
thread) and I'm not responding to what they said, it would be
confusing were I to post after the last one in the thread (Miguel's in
this instance).

    > do you compile your responses and post them at the end of the list?

Sometimes. Few others do. But not necessarily at the end. Sometimes
I'll quote posts after the one to which I'm responding, sometimes
before. Depends.

I do not disagree with what others have said so far.

It's good of you to ask. Many posters make unnecessary impositions
upon us. When I see a screenful of quoted material, I go to the next
post.
__________________________________________________ ___________
A San Franciscan in 47.335 mile² San Francisco
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Jon Bell

In article <8%%jc.301214$Ig.268647@pd7tw2no>, Don Howe <> wrote:
    >"alohacyberian" <> wrote in message
    >news:Wh_jc.33559$_...

[snip]

    >> If, however, I do want to go back and read the old ones, it's just a few
    >> clicks of the mouse on "View" and "Show all Messages" and voila - the all
    >> re-appear. Then when I want to return to just the unread messages, I again
    >> Click on "View", but this time on "Hide read messages". KM
    >> --
    >> (-:alohacyberian:-) At my website there are 3000 live cameras or
    >> visit NASA, play games, read jokes, send greeting cards & connect
    >> to CNN news, NBA, the White House, Academy Awards or learn all
    >> about Hawaii, Israel and more: http://keith.martin.home.att.net/
    >> My un-read messages are in 'Bold' which converts to normal when read.

Tip #1: The ">" marks are supposed to indicate material quoted from
another message, usually written by someone else. If you put your own
stuff on a line that has a ">" in front of it, you'll confuse many of your
readers. I had to stop and and backtrack to alohacyberian's original
posting to make sure that you really wrote that last line.

Tip #2: It's generally considered bad form to quote "signatures," unless
you're commenting on the signature itself, of course. It's unnecessary
for indicating who wrote the material that you're quoting, because your
newsreading software automatically inserts an "attribution line" at the
beginning of the quoted material.