Thread: Why use a fabric side on a strop?

My strop only has leather and so I never use linen first.
From what I've read in this thread it is to heat the blade, dry it, and also remove dust/corrosion particles? If this is the case could you just run the blade under hot water and dry before stropping (this is for the heat)? Also does it have to be linen? What if you stretched cotton over your strop? or perhaps chamois leather? I hear that is the best for removing water/dust/residue. Sorry if this sounds silly but I'm a newbie to all this.