This is a good discussion I've always thought that the boards were first, and best, as a way for players to be a part of a community together. Regardless of what org you're in or what side you're on or what profession you are, we are all AO players and we really have more in common than not when we are playing the game.
And I think that the sense of community and overall helpfulness of the forum posters is a very positive thing for the game in general. In the end the reason you play an MMORPG is because of other people, elsewise, if you don't like people you would play single player games
That's why I think a general game-related forum... guess it would kind of be a hybrid between the old World of Rubi-Ka and Game Mechanics... would be a very good thing. Giving us a place to just talk about the game and mix views without getting defensive ("This is our forum, you nerfwhining troll!") will be a community builder.
But I think that PvP oriented forums are the opposite. The old PvP forum, if you go back and read through it, mostly consists of whines, flames, and rants. If people are posting something useful about PvP - tactics for example - they have always posted that in their own profession's forum. A PvP forum is a very toxic place because of the nature of PvP, and would need very heavy moderation.
I think any communication with Funcom on these forums should be viewed as a bonus, and that we players shouldn't expect much feedback from the devs and such except through the Professionals programme and through things like chats and articles and interviews and so forth.
If extra forums and player mods will allow for things like more updates to the website with information and revisions of the manual and such, I'm strongly in favor of it.
Umm.. that's about it for what I think. Yeah.