You know, this thread, and people commenting on dwarf foreman, has got me thinking.
Every time a migrant wave shows up, I literally spend 30 minutes examining my labor force, and reallocating jobs, with the game paused. I find that I can't remember who had what obscure odd job added to their list for an emergency, and often find my cook busying himself with wood burning, or similar things.
A long and tedious drudgery of "U, V, Rename, Zoom, Examine labors, Space, U, examine labors of related workers, Zoom to all of them, remove the relevant ones, U, V, edit profession name of new comer, zoom, add/subtract new labors". In a 23 immigrant wave, this is quite daunting. (I rename the dorfs specifically so I can tell who hasn't been examined yet)
Often times, an immigrant wave signals the end of my play session, because I just don't feel like dealing with it right then.
While I wouldn't necessarily say that "Dwarf foreman" itself should be built into the game, I think I'd like to see a new screen, similar to the "Millitary" screen, devoted to labors. A list of all your dorfs, and a horizontally scrollable list of their active labors next to them. It would make comparing specific dorfs much faster. Perhaps when I have more time, I should draft up a design and submit it as a suggestion...
I guess what I'm saying is that I empathise with those who feel dependent on that particular external utility, because I see the frustration of job management affecting my own play.
I question the wisdom of blanket-calling persons relying on it "Tools" though. I mean, DF isn't some higher calling, and playing the new version isn't some sacred duty that should be put before your own enjoyment of the game, or else you are a "bad person". In fact, the existence of such utilities and people being vocal about their reliance on them can easily be a red-flag that Toady can watch for. The recent in-built start-location search feature, and ability to reveal features at embark, is just one example of the core game being improved based on a desire expressed, and formerly fulfilled, through an external utility.