There is an opportunity here while redesigning the admin to also make it smarter. Much smarter.

In a new install, the priority should be those basic but important settings such as language, time zone, permalinks etc. After the site’s been running a while, these settings are not going to be edited on a daily basis.

WordPress has so many uses that one admin layout makes no sense, regardless of design and whether that design is “aging” or “modern”. A daily blogger has very different needs to that of a shop manager who mainly processes customer orders.

Could the new admin be developed so that it can learn what the user needs and wants from it, and adapt to those needs?