If you are in any of the threads, there is no link along the top menu bar to log in.

I finally found a spot that was hard to read, since the text was grey instead of black. But it was on the main page of the forum.

Now when I go to various threads, there is a log out button on the top menu bar.

There needs to be a log in button on the top menu bar in place of log out.

Welcome to the forums.

The main page is the only place to log in. Once logged in your login will be remembered with a cookie and you won't have to log in each time from the same computer.

As long as the bar at the top says "Log Out" you are already logged in.

Yes, I fully understand that.

The point is that if so some reason, I'm not logged in, and I go directly to a thread, I can't respond to that thread unless I go to the main page, log in and then have to go back to that thread.

Pretty much all aother forums I visit (many different technologies) have a mini login area on the top of each thread page, or a log in button. Then, after log in you are still on the thread that you directly went to and the log in button is changed to log out.

It is a nice user friendly thing to have on each page.

This is the site suggestion thread, afterall :D