I would suggest you give the new taskbar a chance. I have to admit I really didn't care for it when I forst saw it, but after a couple of days I really liked it more. It's strange that we get used to something ugly and like it just because we've gotten used to it.
However, if you simply can't get used to the new Windows 7 taskbar, Microsoft was kind enough to make it relatively easy to change everything back to the way you liked it.
Go to Taskbar and Start Menu in the Control Panel, choose to Use small icons and never combine. Then un-pin the applications from the taskbar.
You may want to try using the Combine only when taskbar is full to get the best of both worlds.
