Better DM/PM system?

I might be missing something, but from what I've seen, the direct/private messages system on Vital is very basic? I only get e-mail notifications with a link to read the message, but other than that, I don't see another access to said messages.

If I'm correct (i.e. not missing something), is it possible to implement a better system? It would probably improve the community even more as it would enable more interaction between us users.