Posting Placement (was Re: Fisking vs Top-Posting)

I tend to assume that people write emails the way they would like to 
read them.
Thus, if I am writing an email with a lot of detailed context from a 
previous message, I include the revelant portions of the message, and 
reply in line.
However, when I am writing A reply that does not require detailed 
context, but may depend upon some context for either those who have not 
been reading everything, or the cases where the thread is complex enough 
that checking which piece one is responding to (even when the subject 
should not have changed) can be helpful,
then I top post.

Why do I top-post?
Because I prefer to read email in the preview pane of my email reader. 
It is much faster for me to read.  Top-posts I can generally read in the 
preview pane with 0 additional clicks.  I can go scroll down and read 
the selected context if I need that.
In contrast, with a bottom post I have to scroll through the whole 
thread, most of which I have read before, just to find out what this 
poster is adding.
Since, as a reader, I strongly prefer to read top-posts, that is how I 
usually post.
In this case, it is pretty clear that the details of the earlier 
conversation are relevant only to prove that a conversation is taking 
place, so I will assume readers who care have read those posts, and I 
have deleted it all.
It is very true that if you are trying to parse a thread that you have 
not been following, a thread where everyone has bottom posted, while 
retaining sufficient context, is MUCH easier to figure out.  I have had 
more than one thread where I have had to read the top-posts backwards 
from the bottom to figure out what the heck is going on.
But that, for me, is a rare case.

Other people probably read differently.  So I do not claim that my 
reading experience is relevant for how other people shoudl post.  I will 
cope however things are posted.
I do want to re-iterate two points I have seen that are important.  Both 
are relevant no matter what style of posting you like.
1) People need to read the whole email before composing their response. 
 (You can draft ideas while reading, but make sure you actually read 
the whole thing before you finalise your response.)
2) People need to edit longer threads so that they do not copy large 
amounts of redundant and useless text.
I will note on 1 that the satiric demonstration of this that followed 
shortly after the initial note was just beautiful.  Thank you.
Yours,
Joel M. Halpern

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