- Posts (messages) are replies within a thread. First post starts a thread and all subsequent posts are replies.
- Threads are public conversations (Discussions) within forums.
- Forums are topics within categories (Official Announcements, Social, Discussion, Help) of topics.
If you watch a forum, you'll receive notifications of new threads.
If you watch a thread, you'll receive notifications of new posts (replies).
You cannot watch posts, only like them or quote them (reply to).
To watch/unwatch a forum, go to that particular forum (Introductions, Hookups and Hangouts, Politics, LGBT, Drama, etc...) and click on Watch/Unwatch forum.
You can also watch any thread (so you can receive reply alerts) without posting in it—simply open the thread and click on Watch Thread at the top-right of the thread.
No one but moderators should be watching Ban Appeals forum or threads in that forums–it's kinda pointless, because it concerns only the person who started a Ban Appeal and those threads get deleted shortly after they've been dealt with—you'll just be watching a bunch of nonexistent junk. You could watch the Ban Appeals forum, but a lot of new threads will disappear before you can even view them and your alert list will become clogged with junk.
Like
@SexyAsianBitch pointed out, all posts in public forums is public information and will show up in New Posts list.
If you're receiving alerts from Ban Appeals forum, you've either Watched Ban Appeals forum or interfered in a thread in Ban Appeals.
