MNBlockHead, I've done a very cursory look into options like the ones your suggesting. However, we're limited by our forum software if we want it to remain on the forums. Also, there seem to be a number of options outside of the forums, but most require a subscription of some sort.
I'm not saying we won't ever change up how we handle feature requests, but so far I haven't found anything that's a win all around.
If anyone knows of options, feel free to post them here and point me to them.
