An item explorer would be nice, I know the XML editor does have the possibility to list the elements on the XML but still not something that is as easy to search for.

I am attaching a screenshot of the item explorer within a page that OpenOffice.org Draw uses. Would be great to have something similar for items on the layer.

Yes, this has been a very frequently requested new feature -- something like an object manager, I guess you'd call it. I expect we'll eventually see such a feature for Inkscape, but I couldn't say when.

I'm not sure if you realize that Inkscape is an open source project, or know what open source is? But anyone who is a competent coder/programmer, and has some extra time to contribute, is welcome to contact developers. I suppose they have some sort of list of priorities, and could offer you the opportunity to work on a particular task. Or if someone wants a particular feature, and can write the programming, certainly contact the developers and get started!