...each post has a number. I'm guessing it signifies the chronological place in the total for the whole site - all forums. Is that correct?
Yes.
See my reply to artie in a different context for more details. (Long story short, the "utility" of these numbers is not really for the user, but for the software itself: that's how it keeps track of individual posts.)
dkmarsh—member, FineTunedMac Co-op Board of Directors
