I recently started using 2010 after using 2008 for several years (skipped 2009). In 2008 and previous, you could RMB click a feature or face and change the color. You could also select multiple faces or features and the first selection would be the master to change to others selected to its color. RMB clicking no longer gives you that menu choice and it is replaced by the EDIT menu Appearance item. This brings up the dialog but also pulls out the Appearances/Scenes thingy from the left side of the screen which covers part of the screen and seems to be useless for managing the color of things.

Is there a way to retrieve the old, simple, works fine RMB tool for color and texture management? Not only is the new tool more cumbersome but it seems to be lacking the simple power of the old tool. Also, can I permanently get rid of the the Appearance/Scenes tab on the left?