Actually, what would be really useful is to print a count of replies next to the threads link. So I could at a glance find out if there are new messages in the threads I care about. It could be as simple as:

  new | threads (12) | comments | show | ask | jobs | submit

I'll leave it to the implementer to decide whether the count gets reset every time I click on threads, or not.

You just have to remember #points in the upper right. When you didn't get up or down votes, checking out threads isn't worth it anyways. ;)

yes, I agree. This would be very helpful. Then, maybe when you click threads it will show you the updates in bold.

Exactly. Especially for those of us who have been slow-banned, clicking on the Threads link takes a long time to load. I definitely want to see if there are replies first before clicking it.

The site isn't served by a CDN so, for most people outside the US, every click takes anywhere more than 5 seconds (according to Chrome dev tools) to show any given page. Clicking threads and finding nothing new is a monumental waste of time, notifications would improve things a bit.

I've never even clicked "threads" before. The fact that I've used HN for years and never even thought to click "threads" means it is insufficient for me. What are "threads"? Are they any conversation I participate in or only ones I've started? If I make a post, is every comment on it in "threads"? I'll keep checking that link and see what shows up there.

I think what the other person suggested "threads (12)" might make it sufficient. If there was a growing number next to "threads" I would have clicked it years ago.

Because you have to go looking through past pages of your comments. The threads view is ordered by your comments' publication time, not by 'most recently commented upon'.