Hooray!
RoughRunning gets the point - there isn't enough common sense out there (sorry to generalise but we are all guilty of it from time to time)
If you really want to clean the circuit up the best way is to pick your touchdown spot so as to minimise time on the runway (on long runways with finite turnoffs). The student who practises many landings can start to absorb this airmanship through a greater exposure to the bit of the circuit that tends to be most critical.
Go on chaps, give it a go and try to fly a little tighter, maybe a little steeper and in a much more thoughtful way.
FJW - by square I think it's safe to assume we all mean squared off. I am the first to admit that a totally oval pattern is incompatible with everyday life but a shorter crosswind leg will keep you in a better position in the event of an engine failure. Whilst learning by wrote (as you describe) is a good first step it becomes impossible to deal with contingecies as they arise. What if - due to other traffic your base leg is further out than normal? The resultant descent rate and configuration of your aircraft will not be satifactory for the rest of the approach.
In general datums (such at base leg and two stages of flap) are a good way, I feel, to approach the circuit but must not be applied robotically. Perhaps the robotic method of teaching is the root cause of ever larger circuits.
[This message has been edited by M14P (edited 24 April 2001).]