Fencer: There was this suggestion by BBW to color it by default but let it be changed by those who don't want the coloring. There seem to be two types of players - those who "click through" and that relay on board colors and those that take some time and that recognize the "Extinction" next to the board.
But however: I think everybody will get used to it after a short while. Of course some won't like it for the first days, because it means a change in their visual recognition of the board, but that will disappear after a short while - I guess... It simply adds a great amount of usability for the rest of us.