So i have actually put some thought into this lately. I think in order to actually improve the user experience in the backend, our first thoughts should
not be about the look or the layout of the backend -- it should be about structure, organization of elements.
The key elements of the backend (of any web site, actually) are the navigational elements. They're also (apart from header and footer) the one thing all backend pages have in common. They are probably, if you will,
the most used part of the backend. Just think about how often we have to tell people where to find stuff in the backend here in the forums.
So how do we make the navigation easier to use? I think the key is to simplify it by reordering it, changing the way it is split up into pieces or elements related to each other. Right now, the navigation is basically one huge thing which is technically an unordered list -- which is fine since it is the proper HTML element for navigation. We just need to nest it better, which isn't a big deal.
My idea is to first seperate the user-specific parts of the nav from the general elements. Stuff like personal settings, logout etc. should be put in some kind of "user nav", i.e. like this:
Logged in as: user (level)
- backend start page
- personal settings
- back to blog (new window/tab)
- logout
I'd also like to propose new sections for the rest of the nav elements as follows (starting w/ the elements present in a fresh installation but adding some plugin stuff to illustrate the organization better):
- Content: new entry, edit entry, later: static pages
- Media: media db, directories, add media, manage previews
- Taxonomy: categories, later: tags
- Feedback: comments, later: spamblock
- Extend: templates, plugins
- Admin: configuration, permissions
- Tools: import/export, integrity check
Another key factor to simplify the nav is to keep the titles of nav items as short, simple and "obvious" (i.e. self-explanatory) as possible. As a bonus, this will also make it easier to style the backend, especially in terms of multilingual consistency. We may or may not have to use icons to illustrate the purpose of individual nav items.
So, any thoughts on this? (A simple "Make it so" will suffice.

)
Also, question: Is this gonna be a problem apart from the fact that we'll have to change, like, a gazillion lang constants? I have no idea how inserting new nav items in the backend works, will we have to revise every plugin which adds a new nav item as to where to put it's nav item?
YL