When submitting news, what does "Publish in Home?" do?
If you select 'publish in home' the article goes to the top of the heap and is readily available for users to read. Otherwise it is only available through the 'archive' button. Likewise if you want a story published and you have your main module set to news, it won't show up on the main page if you do not select this feature.
This Q&A was found on XOOPS Web Application System : https://xoops.org/modules/smartfaq/faq.php?faqid=415