- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
I believe that they serve great purpose. For example: a bump in a thread. So one may either bump their thread; or forgot to add a something to their post, and doesn't really wish to/know to/ or even want to edit their post. So if there is a supposable "bump" in a thread, a member messages a moderator, the mod will be able to judge due to post time/date. Say if it were ten minutes, it might not be that big of a deal. Now if it were one week; three days; nineteen hours; and twenty minutes since the last post, it is probably quite obvious that someone is bumping. It serves its purpose, although it is rather subtle, there is a purpose.
As for post counts, I would rather not have that come back. The forums would be filled with spam, bumps, elitism, and more boasting and judgment. I honestly don't even see a point in post counts, there is none. To see how many posts someone has to see how active they are, but honestly; that doesn't matter. Quality of Quantity, that is my opinion, and probably many others.