Boo, Hard Disk recorders are fine but I wouldn't give up on Soft Synth recorders so quickly. Cakewalk in particular has a very crowded User interface IMO and trying to find your way around its many features can be daunting as you have found out. There are other Software based recorders or multi-track recorders that you may find easier to use. You should be able to download Demo versions of other Soft Synths like Cakewalk and try them out to see which one[s] suit you best. I can tell you first hand that Sound Forge has an extremely easy to use interface and everything is laid out very logically and its very uncluttered. If you need a Multi-track recorder - (Sound Forge is simply a 2 track "Stereo or Mono" recorder) - then you may want to consider Sony Vegas 4.0. 4.0 is the newest version, Sony having acquired it and all other Sonic Foundry software programs when Sony bought them out. Vegas is a multi-track recorder albeit a rather expensive one.

There is so much you can do with a Soft Synth recorder or Soft Synth Multi-track recorder that you can't do with a Hard Disk recorder. There are enormous amounts of Tools and Editing options on a software based program that Hard Disk recorders can't touch. You just need to find the program that is to your liking and has an easy to use and navigate interface. If you do decide to go hardware based there are many fine options to fit your needs though.

Best regards,
Mike