Adding members to your Friends list allows you to see their activities in your Activity Feed and more easily keep in touch with them. As with other online communities (and much like real life), friendship is a two-way-street. You can invite any member to be your friend, but they will not appear in your Friend list or on your Home Page Activity Feed unless they accept your request.
You can add friends from within a thread (by clicking on a user's name to reach their profile) or by searching for a member in the User Directory. You can find the Directory by clicking into the Forums and then selecting "View All Users" from the shortcut menu in the right column. The User Directory can be searched or browsed to find the member(s) who you would like to add as a Friend.
From the member's profile, select the "Add to Friends" option below their avatar. This will open a request window where you can add a note to accompany your Friend Request. Your friends' names and avatars will appear in your Friend list on your Homepage.
If you decide that you'd no longer like to be Friends with someone you can easily remove them. Click on their name in your friends list (or in any of their posts) to reach their profile. Under their avatar, select the "Remove as a Friend" link.
Once you remove someone from your Friends list, your information will no longer appear in their Activity Feed and their activity will no longer appear in yours. No notifications are sent when a Friend is removed, but you will disappear from their Friend list.