I don't know about you guys, but when I first started Drupal, I had to go through all the different menus a thousand times over just to find one simple thing. Of course, after a little getting used to, you sort of know where everything is and have a good understanding of how the interface is supposed to flow. But as a beginner, it was very frustrating.

Luckily, and randomly, I stumbled across a module called Administration Menu which replaces the usual navigation links on the left or right side with drop down menus on the top.

As can be seen in the picture (or if it is too small to see, just click on it), the panel on the left is duplicated on the top, so now the user has a choice. If you decide to get rid of the navigation fields on the left, simply to go Site Building > Blocks > Naviation > Set to "none" and that is all.