Info Dumps

Several of my stories get complaints about info dumps. I have to go back and look for the specific spots, but it seems like an 'info dump' is filling in with back story, and I can't figure out why this is a bad thing. For example, in one story I find it's easier to explain how one character came to be a father in one paragraph, rather than force that information into dialogue or just plain "showing" instead of "telling."
The real question becomes: How important is this information? It adds flavor, but unless it's vital to the story, and it can't be worked in, leave it out. It's important that the writer has thought about it, but it isn't important that the reader be told about it. In the story I'm working on for next Tuesday, I've cut it. It's interesting back story, and it helps solidify the age of the character, but it doesn't propel the story along. I don't think my info-dumps are a problem in a novel, in fact, I wonder if that's part of having a 'novel style' instead of a 'short story style' of writing.

POV Switches

I wrote a story with two characters. The main character was rather stupid (not low-I.Q. stupid, just too lazy to think stupid) and didn't understand the distinction between reality and his made up world. The second character (who isn't an antagonist) watches the transformation of the main character. Since the second character is more connected with reality, it made sense to tell the story through his eyes. This wasn't so much of a deliberate decision as it just got written that way. Trying to write in the main characters point of view was too limiting.
The other problem was that in my first scene I switched back and forth between the two POV's in the same scene. If I had written the scene twice, covering the same events from two different perspectives, that would have been better. I'm sure someone would have complained about it, but it would have been better than constantly swapping back and forth. I thought it was readable the way it was, but I'd have to go through a lot of fiction to see if there's any precedent to the way I wrote it.
So the lesson of the week: Keep your point of view in one head for an entire scene.