Not sure if this suggestion made it to this list... apologies if it's redundant, NB new addendum below.
A suggestion from the peanut gallery...
1) All future releases have default.svg with the display units set for px, scale= 1uu/px
2) Move the scale controls to another tab in the Document Properties panel, with language to describe function.
3) Expose the "Set page to drawing or selection" toolset (which is often overlooked) on the Page tab of the Document properties panel.
Mockup of modified Document properties panel:
https://inkscape.org/en/~TylerDurden/%E2%98%85document-properties-panel-revi...
The above changes should alleviate much of the confusion and retain the controls for scale. Typical users needn't be concerned with scale and its complicated workings.
Thank you for your time and consideration, TD
Addendum:
A recent query* by a user seems to indicate confusion regarding the scale tools: the user trying to fit a large 1:1 drawing onto a smaller sheet of paper, in the same way a drafting program might use "scale". This reinforces the suggestions that language in the UI should clearly differentiate Inkscape's use of the term "scale" from the frequent use in drafting.
* http://www.inkscapeforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=32988
TD
-- Sent from: http://inkscape.13.x6.nabble.com/Inkscape-Dev-f2781808.html