In article <11**********************@p79g2000cwp.googlegroups .com>,
jb*****@gmail.com says...
[ ... ]
How do I not top-post? Am I always supposed to reply to the last person
who posted in the thread, or always to the first?
Top-posting or otherwise isn't about which post you follow-up to.
It's about where you write your comments. When you write your
comments at the top of your post, followed by a quote of the post to
which you're following up, that's a top-post.
This post is at least an attempt at something closer to the
recommended style. When you post a follow-up, start by trimming away
all the quoted material that isn't directly relevant. Then write a
comment immediately following the quoted bit to which it applies. If
you want to comment on two or more parts, your comments get
interleaved with the quotes to which they reply.
If you can't find a relatively short bit to quote that really says
what you're commenting on, it's perfectly reasonable to write your
own summary of what you think they're saying. When you do this, you
do need to make it clear that this is your summary though -- usually
something like:
[... code demonstrating partial specialization elided ]
My comments on partial specialization go here...
As far as which post to follow up to: follow up to the post you want
to comment on, whether that's the first in the thread, the last, or
somewhere else. The topic of a thread can drift, and in some cases
sub-threads develop. Your comments might relate only distantly to
original post or the most recent one, so it wouldn't make any sense
to follow up to either of them.
--
Later,
Jerry.
The universe is a figment of its own imagination.
