Who's pissing about with the forum software ?

[Rogue]

I think there's a reason why many sites have details such as "users online" placed out of the way - it's "interesting" but of little practical use. I can see a reason for "active topics" as it's a quick and easy way to see if a new post has been made in a thread you might be following, if you were so inclined.

It will be interesting to see how it all works out but to be honest... right now the sidebar doesn't seem like such a great idea.