You've got a point. Some people may not know that a "PM" is accomplished by "Starting a Conversation" here. Others may not realize someone started a Conversation with them, as it can be easy to miss if you don't know what to look for.
For members who have never used the function here:
Starting a private Conversation is easy. In the upper-right corner of the screen, there are three links; Your screen-name, "Inbox", and "Alerts".
Inbox is where you can start a private Conversation with any other member, and also where you will receive a notice that you have an unread Conversation from another member.
Any unread messages will cause a red number to appear on the Inbox link. (If you have one unread message, your Inbox will have a "1" on it, three unread messages will have a "3", fifteen unread messages will have a "15", etc.)
"PM" is an older term, one that is used elsewhere, not here...so it's a little confusing to some who may never have used the "Private Messaging" function (known here as: Start a Conversation) on other sites.
