John,
>Maybe I missed some replies out there in UT Land. I just erased to get down to 37 messages and counting down
Yep, limit of 50 for PUTM's also. But the newer ones always show at the top and the oldest ones drop off the bottom. When there is a reply I particularly want to keep, I store it to a UT folder, so I don't have to worry about it scrolling off.
I usually scan message headers for everything posted here, and look closely at threads I'm involved in, or messages that I am qualified to answer.
But when time is short or access is slow, I go to the replies button first. Sometimes I see threads I forgot I was in, so it's a good habit to develop.