[Mailman-Users] The "right" way to reply to a mailing list

[Steven D'Aprano]

On Thu, Mar 19, 2015 at 05:45:58PM -0700, Mark Sapiro wrote:

> I do understand that in some business situations (contract negotiations,
> attorney/client communication and the like), it is useful and pretty
> much demanded that each message contain the full transcript of what went
> before, 

I don't think it is useful. It might be demanded, but that's just 
because it's the convention, not because it's useful. If it were useful 
to include a full transcript of everything that went on prior in each 
and every message, lawyers would do so with paper correspondence (and 
charge the client for photocopying). But they don't.

I've been through a number of (thankfully minor) legal actions, and 
going through conventional top-posted emails is *painful*. It makes 
searching for keywords ineffective in all the email clients I've used. 
Nobody ever bothers to read or go through the quoted transcripts, why 
would you read the quoted-to-the-nth-degree text when you can read the 
original?

The worst example I found was quoted twenty-one levels deep. A three 
line response plus sig (naturally including one of those nonsense legal 
disclaimers about not reading the email if you aren't the intended 
recipient) followed by about thirty pages of quoted text starting with > 
then >> then >>> and so on to >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>. And it was my job 
to go through it, and the rest of the emails in the thread, in both 
directions, looking for anything relevent to the legal action. Even 
though I wasn't actively reading the quoted sections, the sheer volume 
of cruft to wade through is brain-melting. Counting the entire 
conversation, the original post was duplicated something like fifty or 
sixty times.

Fun times.


> but this has no place on an email discussion list.

Agreed! But too many people replying with their smart phones and 
iProducts can't do anything else...


> This is a major hot-button issue for me, The above is only scratching
> the surface.

I feel your pain :-)


-- 
Steve