This week my crystal ball tells me that Linux is due for a major makeover and not just another pretty theme: A real makeover. It's time for Linux developers to stop following the Windows and Mac Desktop deveopers and get creative on their own.

I understand the argument against this change in direction. The argument goes something like this: Make Linux look and act like familiar OSs so that migration to it will be easier for end users. My argument is to make Linux better by creating an intuitive interface that doesn't look or act like Windows or Mac.

KDE and GNOME, the leading Linux Window Managers, mimic the look and feel of Windows and older versions of the Mac OS with customizable themes, desktop icons, cascading menus and so on. The Enlightenment Window Manager is interesting and is on the right path but still falls into familiar territory for my taste.

But what about a look that's distinctly Linux?