Aqua-Soft ForumsBeing as this is a customization forum, perhaps separate the release and request sections and place them on the main page.
To use myself as an example, more often than not I find something I may have released bumped off the front page because someone in a request thread unecessarily bumps it ten seconds later saying "glad you like them."
I just think if the releases got more air time on the front page, more (lazy) people would have a chance to see them and get them in their early active life span and you'd have less request threads. It'd be a marginal improvement though, most of it still lies on the ability to search. 
If vertical space is the issue, perhaps a two column forum design in the future wouldn't be too unlikely being as it's nearly 2008, I'd assume the default screen resolution demographic has improved somewhat.