I've already mentioned how snappy the new interface feels, but has anyone given any thought to implementing Google Gears support?
If you've not had any experience with this, it's sort of a new approach on an old idea. It implements a fast local cache of the admin site's images, pages, and I believe javascript. At the extremes of implementation, it allows for off-line review of your settings and information, and I believe it's possible to allow for queued off-line changes (though don't quote me on that).
At the very least, it makes the web interface feel like a local application. I've been using it in conjunction with Wordpress and I must say it's not invasive after the initial installation/enabling and quite the speed demon.