---- Gary <gwpaul@ptd.net> wrote:
> Well...thank you all for the warm and friendly welcome, I will probably try
> to steer one of my projects to php (or at least a portion of) in a short
> while.
>
<!-- SNIP -->

Gary, one thing to keep in mind is to BOTTOM POST and TRIM your posts.

By Bottom Posting (common when on a mailing list or NG) it gives greater context as you read through the previous posts and by the time of getting to where the new response is, it is in sync. No skipping back and forth to read to get the context.

Trimming is appropriate when addressing a specific entry or when cutting off Dan's 12 line signature block to reply to a message.

And yeah, you'll find a number of us aren't as serious as others may like.

Welcome to the list. I also keep www.php.net handy and a general rule of thumb when using Firefox if you have the google search plug-in running is to use "php: <question>" where <question> is what you are looking to do. By prefacing the search with php: google tends to give greater responses since it looks for PHP first and then the question.

HTH.
Wolf

The problem with bottom posting is that if you follow the conversation,
you have to scroll to find the new content. I guess if you trim and
bottom post it's not so bad.

Thank you,
Micah Gersten
onShore Networks
Internal Developer
http://www.onshore.com



Wolf wrote:
> By Bottom Posting (common when on a mailing list or NG) it gives greater context as you read through the previous posts and by the time of getting to where the new response is, it is in sync. No skipping back and forth to read to get the context.
>
>

On 13 Oct 2008, at 16:48, Micah Gersten wrote:
> Wolf wrote:
>> By Bottom Posting (common when on a mailing list or NG) it gives
>> greater context as you read through the previous posts and by the
>> time of getting to where the new response is, it is in sync. No
>> skipping back and forth to read to get the context.
>
> The problem with bottom posting is that if you follow the
> conversation,
> you have to scroll to find the new content. I guess if you trim and
> bottom post it's not so bad.

The major benefit of bottom posting is providing easy-to-read context
to each message. This is important for those of us on many lists, for
times when you missed an earlier part of a conversation or when people
are reading your messages in archives.

At the end of the day it's beneficial to the community at large if
each individual message can stand on its own. Judicious trimming and
bottom-posting ensures this and makes list archives more valuable as a
reference for Googlers.

Of course that's just my opinion and I know many people disagree but
on this issue discussion is generally pointless since it's a religious
bike shed.

Praise FSM!

-Stut

--
http://stut.net/

> -----Original Message-----

> From: Micah Gersten [mailto:micah@onshore.com]
> Sent: Monday, October 13, 2008 10:49 AM
> To: PHP General
> Subject: Re: [php] New to PHP
>
> The problem with bottom posting is that if you follow the conversation,
> you have to scroll to find the new content. I guess if you trim and
> bottom post it's not so bad.
>
> Wolf wrote:

> > By Bottom Posting (common when on a mailing list or NG) it gives

> greater context as you read through the previous posts and by the time
> of getting to where the new response is, it is in sync. No skipping
> back and forth to read to get the context.


The list, however, disagrees with you:

3. Do not top post. Place your answer underneath anyone you wish to quote and remove any previous comment that is not relevant to your post.

That is taken from http://us3.php.net/reST/php-src/README.MAILINGLIST_RULES . Sure, it's labeled as "more of a guideline"... but it is irrefutable proof that yes, the mailing list rules DO discuss top posting--and they frown on it.

As for having to scroll to read the new content--first of all, you sound very lazy. Second of all, it shouldn't be that big of a deal if people are properly trimming their messages.

I might also note:

7. Please configure your email client to use a real name and keep message signatures to a maximum of 2 lines if at all necessary.

*cough*


Todd Boyd
Web Programmer