I have to agree that giving the portal page CP control would be great. And why not throw in MySQL support while you're at it? Sorry, I had to throw that one in there.
I love UBBDevs home page implementation, but it would be easier and very marketable to have a portal built in so new people could roll out a UBB integrated site easier. It would give them a good foundation for a faster start. I realize that there are a lot of purist that would scoff at that idea but I feel it's valid.
