Excellent reference, McKay. You beat me to it! Way to be on the ball!
You might also see the references to the "Texas crutch," which is a technique used to lessen the length of the stall by foil wrapping. I have used the crutch, but don't foil anything anymore. The only time I ever wrap meat in foil is prior to smoking, and when I remove it to rest in the cooler!
Let me just say this about the stall - expect it, with large cuts of meat, and plan for it. It can last for several hours! You'll see the internal temp of the meat rise, somewhat rapidly, prior to the stall. You'll find yourself thinking "Wow! My 8 lb pork butt is going to be done in 4 hours, at this rate!" Heh... doesn't work that way. At some point, usually in the 160s to 170s range, that upward soaring temperature will plateau, and "stall." Trust me on this, it happens
every time with large cuts of meat. You won't see a stall on ribs, chops, things like that.
Very important: Don't be tempted to "rush" the stall by cranking the temp all the way up. After an hour or two into the stall, I'll usually increase temp 10-15°, but that's it. The stall is where all that wonderful internal fat and tissue is rendering into liquid, and moving into the muscle meat! As it moves to the surface, you get that surface cooling effect that causes the temp to flatten-out. You, often, will even see the temp fall a few degrees! This is normal, and your smoker is still working!
With experience, you'll learn to plan for, and embrace the stall! It's our friend, as it's when the magic is happening inside the meat!
