Ya, that might not be a bad idea to get you started. Do something that is valuable info, something that people will link to naturally. Try an automotive repair site. Most likely the would approve a site that helps people. You can get content written cheap at iWriter.com
Content or NO Content, it really doesn't matter whether you have it or not... I was approved with a site that had NO content on it whatsoever... Bottom line now is this... If it's NOT a USEFUL site, you will NOT be approved! GC
Dude, keep your domain name. As long as you aren't doing some silly "bad" hacking, the word hack does not matter. Hack means a lot of things . Now, saying that, many here have told you about using PLR and Google's view on it. It's basically the same as Adsense in a Box... or Adsense Arbitrage (spelling?). Since you have a forum, all you need to do is have people talking about things, but be aware of things that Google Adsense does not want you promoting - hate, sex, drugs, rock n roll, ect.