Last year I looked at the MSCUI. Along with the v1.3 release is a glimpse into the future. The user experience is greatly enhanced with the use of Silverlight 2.0. Check out the Patient Journey Demonstrator (you'll need to install Silverlight first):
Bill Crounse has a good overview and links here.
The UI busy and complex, but there seems to be an intuitive consistency to the madness. Besides the slick look, one of the great things about Silverlight (and WPF) are the transition animations that makes using the controls a feel-good experience.
Most of the Silverlight/WPF demos I've seen are photo/video mashup types of applications. The MSCUI clinical workflow and patient record demos give you a much better appreciation for how this UI technology can be put to effective use.
I still think the MSCUI Design Guidance documents are the key to success. Everybody goes gaga over the cool graphics and animations, but these requirements need to drive the use of the technology.
UPDATE (9/11/08): MSCUI R1.5 is now live.
