Mm, after I looked around the 3.5 v. 4e forum and heard about Pathfinder, I downloaded the beta. I think I'm converted.

What I really like about what they've done is that they've made the classes a bit more unique. The fighter, for example, now has abilities nobody else can get (instead of just a lot of feats, only three of which were exclusive), and the bard is both a jack-of-all-trades and a skill monkey good enough to replace the rogue (the bard is almost...a worthwhile class to take ). And the skill mechanic that allows full ranks in all skill (with a bonus to class skills), I love. I've only skimmed most of it, but I like what I've seen.

I'm interested in hearing the rest of your post, GP, especially with regards to Trailblazer. Encounters have always stumped me, but I love Pathfinder's reverse-method (look at total XP and add up monsters to reach it; as opposed to the standard guess CRs and then find XP) as complicated as it is.