Now, in a previous post of mine discussing comparing tables using EXCEPT <reference>, I noted that it is best practice to explicitly name your columns in any query using EXCEPT.
I saw this in your previous article, but didn't respond to it there...I think you're wrong, and that this is one of the rare instances where it's best NOT to explicitly name your columns. If the column order is different between the two tables, then there may be other differences as well. Of course there can be other differences without the column order being different or the column order could be the only difference, but since it's simpler to use * and the failure provides you with useful information (that the structure of the two tables has branched at some point), that's what I'd use. Of course you may need to do the comparision in any case, in which case todays script can come in handy.
Speaking of todays script, using
@col_list = IsNull(@col_list +',' , '') + col
prevents having to delete a trailing comma.