Agreed, but a version that fell open almost instantly and swayed just for a moment would be very cool, and perhaps an improvement on the standard UI. I wonder what other subtle animations might be helpful?
None, if it locks up your computer while animating at a buttery smooth ~2fps.
I disagree.
Depends on the situation.
I agree. for instance: if you hate your users and want to make them suffer, that would be a good situation to use this.