Exactly. I think most people here are too used to the controls to consider just how obtuse they are. The first step is realizing that you actually have a problem, and I think too many people see the (legitimate) criticism of DF's interface as an attack on the game. Also, yes, keyboard shortcuts are a faster way to navigate menus. No, no one is trying to take them away. However, we need some less confusing interface for new people. Currently, you basically have to either use a tutorial, or just mash buttons until you figure out how jobs work. This is not how interfaces should work, at all. I love DF, but something needs to be done about the interface.
It's obviously not perfect. On better organization I couldn't agree with you more. Whether it be some sort of logical organization, just alphabetical, or even consistent in it's randomness. Anything would be better than the way some of the menus are set up now. And some just don't have enough hot keys.
I can't agree on the interface feeling "obtuse" however. I figured out the numpad intricacies within 2 minutes of trying the game (back in 2d) and thought that it was damn clever the way toady laid it out. But then some people try pressing all the buttons and others feel a need to be told how to do things. It feels like a curses interface, which I use all the time, just with extra buttons. Most windows plebs however have not had the luxury.
One thing that would help a lot would be the job manager "type what you want" on every menu. Imagine that, the ability to type out whatever you wanted and watch it real-time filter out entries that don't match, in every menu. Example:
at a metalsmith's forge type
/iron spearand then suddenly the only thing you see on the menu is iron spear without saying q-iron-weapon-spear with the keypad. This would be spectacular on multi-tiered menu's with too many options for hotkeys(forge,glass,craft,leather).
It's my #1 wish-list feature.
90% of the menus in dwarf fortress need to be replaced with mouse interfaces. Remembering every last key is literally impossible. Not joking, it's actually impossible. Maybe not for like two people. I'm talking overwhelming majority. Not that they will save a majority of newbies any struggling time.
The[re] should still [be a] hotkey, after the name of course.
We also need a point and click (and click again) method of designating a length of wall too.
No one actually memorizes every hotkey, that's why the tab menu pops up every time you enter a top level command. But point and click construction would be great. Use the keypad to select the construction material or object, then just click wherever you want to designate buildings/walls/floors. That would be a spectacular supplement to the current system. I also wish the mouse worked for umhk stuff like farm plots and bridges.
The mouse is not a magic wand that you can waive at things to make them easier. Integrating it into a majority of the menus would be a waste of development effort with the result being far less desirable than you believe. The mouse should be used for it's strengths, not hacked into every operation of the application. Mouse for eyeballing and designating stuff on the left, and keyboard for menus on the right. Imagine how awesome it would be to click on your target after a k, v, or q command. That is where efficiency lies.
The struggle time might be eliminated by a 60 second "how to use the menus" tutorial button on the main menu. Or just link it to the main help, that's all in IIRC.
If you really don't think mouse support is important, try unplugging your mouse and using your OS. It's completely possible, but annoying and clunky, and the learning curve on keyboard controls is steeper than the learning curve of a mouse.
I operate completely without a mouse at home and at work on a regular basis. "Annoying and clunky" defines mouse navigation. If you watched me navigate windows without a mouse you would wonder to yourself how many cumulative hours of your life you've wasted navigating and clicking on things with a mouse. I'm not trying to sound like a superior asshole, I really am that fast. By the time you've clicked an icon or a button I'm 6 directories in, have started a program, opened a file, made changes, saved and quit. Would you rather be doing things as fast as you can think, or aiming a mouse at that tiny little minimize button? The mouse is a crutch, let it go.
All it takes is keyboard recognition, knowledge of the hotkeys and commands, and a little practice. I'm not that awesome, anyone can do it