Issues with the usability of the new gmail canvas

I'm very concerned with the gmail canvas in the new iGoogle. I'm all in favor of change and new features but I wouldn't consider this an upgrade at all. Why in heaven's name would I want igoogle to automatically send me to a less useful version of my mailbox when I click on an email? I've lost material numerous times because nowhere in this new roll out did I learn about the various limits of the gmail client. I guess they thought we'd appreciate learning the hard way?

I want auto-drafting
I want my tabs
I want click-through links
I want my reply draft to carry-over if I decide to reply-all instead
If I decide I want to add an email address to a reply, I want my contacts to pop up after I type the first few letters
When I hit my browsers back button I want to go BACK not to the last page I visited before I entering my mailbox through my homepage
Just because I've opened the canvas once I don't want it open every time I go back to my igoogle

I LOVE my igoogle but I primarily use it for news headlines or as a peak and then portal to my gmail. The gmail canvas has become such a pain-in-the-ass hindrance that iGoogle has become useless as a homepage and I avoid it.