Which is better? To start a thread and post your link there or to have it in your signature and reply to a few threads? Or is it the same?
Forum Link Building tips (it's not just your signiture!) You'll find that a mix of things is the best practice when getting forum links. Though, regardless of what you are trying to do, you'll also find that the link works best if you are not spamming the forum for a link, and are actually a PART of the community. If you are actually providing some type of content with a link in a post, you will find that it will pull in traffic. If you simply post a link in a thread you will find yourself banned as a spammer. The same pretty much applies to the signature link. If your posts are worth reading, more people will check out your sig links. If you post nothing but one liners or other crap, then you'll find that not even the spiders care all that much more.