[eluser]thurting[/eluser]
Damn dude. If you 'cringe at the thought of modifying the CI code to suite [your] needs or writing [your] own Upload class', then maybe you should rethink your foray into web development. CI isn't meant to be an out of the box solution to build any website you can imagine. It is meant to be a base for you to work off of. If you want to extend the core, fire up your text editor and write some code. If you run into problems, come here for help. But don't get all whiny because it doesn't fit your needs exactly. After all, you downloaded it for FREE.
