I know, and you're actually right. If someone could make a patch upgrade for hammer it would be nice. But, there are several third party editors that perform tasks you can't normally do in hammer. Programs like terrain generators and the like. As far as measurements, you have to look at the bottem of the window and look at the dimensions.
I haven't done anything with the new hammer editor, but i've heard and read so much about it. I wish the same things.