[Delphinus]

I've noticed that when I've ordered frags and they come overnight in a little baggies, I've had more success (less mortality from shipping stress) when I've just taken them out and put them in the tank. Temperature, pH, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, whatever whatever, surely all hugely different, and yet they live better than when I do a slow drip over a matter of hours and have everything slowly temperature matched.

Now, having said that, there are things I'd still do a drip on. Clams, urchins, shrimp ... But corals ... yeah surprising but the slow drip doesn't really help them. Take them out of the cruddy water and put them in good water faster and they recover faster. I think the "smoke in the house" analogy is spot on. If the fresh air kills you then you were done for already.