Sub-forums are simple.
If you're interested in something in particular, you find the sub-forum and browse the first two pages; Like for Classes. (i used to browse the ranger sub-forum in the eq live forums for tips and different up-to-date developments)
If it's very specific, you use the search feature.
If you want an answer to a question asap, you post in general or wherever the highest population is.
If you're concerned that the place you're going to post in will create new pages too quickly for your post to be noticed then post in a less populated place.
What some forums do is let you set the sub-forum that the post will be located in while at the same time grouping all recent posts in the same place to allow everybody a chance to see them without browsing all the sub-forums. Generally they have a policy against "empty" or "duplicated" topics.
I think one thing that would help is if I could customize the forum list so that the sub-forums I like will appear at the top of the page. Additionally, new posts should light up the row where the sub-forum is listed. "Today" somehow just isn't a good enough indicator for me; it doesn't make enough "noise".
I also think forums don't use horizontal space very well. And they have too much empty space. This forum for example: the forum list could be in two columns rather than one to show more in one screen.
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