I have noticed when i logged on that there is two lines and a plus sign next to our avatars. i also saw a "Thanks" sign next to the "quote" button. What do those buttons mean?

I'm guessing it's like a karma system. You "thank" somebody when they do something that you appreciate-whether it's cheering you up, or being nice to someone else, or something like that. I'm not sure about that, though.

I pressed the thanks button on you because you answered one of my questions!

^^ I try...