We didn’t use 'em on the old board. Why aren’t we using them on the new one?
What’s the justification for using them?
Case against:[ol][li]I can tell pretty easily how many posts are in a thread by looking at the number in the ‘Replies’ column.[/li][li]My initial impression is that having the software check the number of posts and switch the icon dynamically would make displaying forum thread lists slower.[/li][li]Why would thread with more than fifteen posts merit more attention than threads with less posts? I’ve seen several GQ threads where a question was asked and answered, with useful, interesting and/or entertaining information, with less than 15 posts.[/li][/ol]
I’m not saying we SHOULD use them, I was just wondering. Are they animated in some way?
Based on what I’ve seen on other message boards, they’re not animated; they’re just red. No point in making the server perform yet another task every time somebody loads a forum, though.
It’s also somewhat misleading to call more that 15 posts a “hot” topic on this board. 500, maybe, but 15? 
I personally just see them as eyeball clutter and extra (although minuscule) server load.