Originally Posted by thegeneral
Can someone fill me on what the rule is so I can know if I should be complaining?
It's different for different airlines.
I would respectfully suggest that you assume that the cabin crew (a) know how to do their jobs; and (b) have no interest in irritating you just for the sheer hell of it. If you're told by the cabin crew to do something, complaining about it starts from the premise that at least one of those two is missing.