MadJim,
You are correct that the new interface will take sometime to get used too. Also, the way that you do queries is a whole lot different. We won't go to the new version until sometime next year. I usually prefer to wait for the first patch before moving to any new software versions. In my opinion, it is better to wait for the bugs to be fixed.
I do plan on install the released version on a test server in the next month or so. This will allow me to learn the product and get familiar with it.