Here is my idea for a new HUD, I will have a picture up soon.
First off! Keep it simple. Clean and simple. The old HUD is turned on by putting :HUD 1/0 in the console. The actions menu would be a separate window like the inventory. All windows, even when turned off, would have their location remembered. For instance, you turn on your inventory, and move it. You turn it off. You turn it back on, and it is in the same place. The equipment menu would default to not showing the big picture, only the slots. The messages, combat, and crafting windows would only come up when in use. So you craft meat, it pops up. Once it goes away, you can hit space to bring up the last one opened. Finally, the whole thing could have it's resolution changed, so you could see farther and have more room. Thanks!