Layers & Symbols problem

Question

In CS4 I used to be able to drag a symbol from the symbol pallete, break the link, and with a tiff placed behind, easily make a clipping mask.
Now in CS5 it seems like whenever I use a new symbol and break the link it places it on a different layer (it doesn't say that it's a different layer but it uses a different color to show the guides as if it were on a different layer & when I go into the symbols palete the color to the left of the groups or layers within a layer is a different color). When I try to create a clipping mask with something on a different "layer", it doesn't work. The only way I can seem to get it to clip what I want is to go into the Layer's options & go to Flatten Artwork & then ungroup it. This is very time consuming. I know that I can now use the draw inside option to place the tiff into the former symbol, but this is a lot slower then how I used to do this.
So I guess my question is this: Is there any way when I break the link to a symbol to keep it from being put on a new "layer"? Or is there any way in general to keep there from being seperate "layers" within a layer?

Answer 1

I am surprised that no one else on the web seems to be complaining about this problem. All of the other 3 artists in my art department hate these new changes to the Layers palette. Perhaps we unlink symbols more then other people. Another issue I have found with the new "layers" is that if I have a symbol that I've broken the link for and it is part of a design, if I select the whole thing and try to copy it, it's copy stacks things in a different order. Again, the only way I've found to fix this is to go into the layer's pallete and select flatten artwork. It's frustrating especially because in the layer's pallete it says that everything is on the same layer, it just acts like it's on a different layer.