Earlier, I posted about how you can revert those new lights in Leopard's Dock back to Tiger's old triangles (and I can't say I was too surprised to find out that most of you didn't want to revert anything-- do what feels right, man), and I said that the next thing to go would be Leopard's shiny Dock-top.

And now, here we go-- Something Awful's echobucket has apparently found the files that need to be changed to edit the look of the dock. As with the triangles, the Dock elements have a few sizes to them, so replace the "scruve-x.png" files (where x is "l," "m," "sm," or "xl") in the Dock package's /Contents/Resources folder (make sure to back up the original files just in case, too), and then type "killall Dock" in the Terminal to restart it, and bingo, a slightly less bright dock.

In fact, just by changing the color of those pictures, you can change the color of the Dock itself (here's an orange dock on a black background for Halloween, via Digg commenter HacKing). It can't be too long before some enterprising programmer figures out how to put all of this inside an easy-to-use app, but here's the real question: if it's all this easy, why didn't Apple offer us this kind of customization ourselves? Sure, when you hand the paintbrushes to the people, things can get ugly, but they can also get much more beautiful, too.

[via Digg]

Aaron bought 40 of the new iPod nanos for a client (all he says is that he had to put content on them), and apparently was struck by how beautiful they were all lined up together, so he got a quick photo shoot set up on Flickr.

While I called them stubby and squished before, I have to admit that they look pretty darn elegant in these pics. I'm still not buying one (an iPhone is going to be my next purchase, very soon here), but the design is growing on me a little bit. I still think the scroll wheel looks weird, though-- it balances perfectly on the old iPods, and here it's too small and leaves too much space open on the sides. I'm no Ive, but I know what I like.

Thanks, AaronS!

We've already seen the iPhone's influence on the new iMac, but the Audi? A British ConceptCar site claims the aluminum and glass casing of the new iMac reminded them of another chrome, aluminum and glass design-- that of an Audi. As you can see in the picture above, the comparison kind of works. Kind of. I especially like the coloring on the windshield.

I really doubt the iMac's design was directly inspired by the car-- I don't see Apple designers sitting around a table while one of them looks out the window and is suddenly inspired by something he sees driving past. Rather, my guess is, as ConceptCar says, that they're both headed towards the same things: form mixed with function, and grace mixed with power.

But then again, who knows what inspired Apple to make that logo black? The iMac certainly costs about as much as my first car did.

Thanks, Christian!

There's a curious meme on the web today: how to clean your MacBook effectively. Over at MacApper, Josh Holloway has apparently discovered (via InsanelyMac) that the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser is the key to black Mac nirvana. And in an apparently unrelated post over at the FreeMacBlog Brian Stucki has determined that the white MacBook needs the tender loving care of Glass Plus Wipes. So there you have it: bridging the gap between black and white is a nice clean MacBook.

Update: I suppose it's worth saying: use this information at your own risk. It is a good idea to test any cleaning product on the (replaceable) battery before using it on the entire computer.

With the second quarter of 2007 approaching, people are thinking about hardware updates from Apple. According to MacScoop, Apple may make a black 24" iMac available with the next revision, possibly in March.

When the original black iPod sold so well, Apple made the color available to other iPods, as well as the MacBooks. I think a black iMac would be cool, as long as it isn't significantly more expensive just for being black (like the MacBook).

Ash over at techpaedia dropped us a line to let us know about some photos he took of the new U2 iPod at an Apple retail store. The four photos over at his site show the rear black metal enclosure a little more clearly than the official ones on Apple's site.

Ash reports that "like the traditional stainless steel mirrored finish enclosure, it is a fingerprint magnet." We'd also have to assume that it scratches as easily as the reflective mirror finish on most other iPods too.

Now that Apple has created a completely black bodied iPod, how long do you think it'll be until they start bundling black accessories with its black products? Or will we just have to live with it, just like we've been living with the fingerprint and scratch magnet "feature" present on practically every iPod?

Apple has re-released the U2 iPod in the form of a red and black 5G iPod with video. The new U2 iPod features one design element to differentiate it from the normal 5G iPod and the previous U2 iPod: "an all-black stainless steel enclosure" or (as a subtitle underneath a picture of the U2 iPod mentions) a rear featuring "striking black metal." The screenshots of the new U2 iPod on Apple's site don't show the black metal very clearly thanks to the black background, so we'll have to wait for some hands-on pictures for a "yay or nay" design critique. Fingers crossed it doesn't scratch as easily as, well, every other iPod ever made.

Another bonus over the normal iPod is the inclusion of an iTunes coupon that lets U2 iPod owners download an exclusive video featuring music and interviews with the Irish rock band. Pricing is $329 ($30 more than a vanilla iPod) and shipping is currently "within 24 hours."

Update: check out the Quicktime VR movie at the bottom of this page ("take the U2 iPod for a spin") for a better look at the black metal enclosure. Without the U2 signatures and the red scroll wheel (i.e. on a normal, black 5G iPod) it'd look great!

[Thanks, Robert]

Picking a rig to highlight this afternoon was pretty easy. Flickr user cdevroe has posted some nice shots of his brand new, not-even-24-hours-old MacBook. In black, no less. We're jealous.

"Macbook" by posted by cdevroe.

If you'd like to see your own rig featured here, simply upload photos into our group Flickr pool. We'll select an image every day to highlight.

Two hundred dollars for 20GB and black paint?!? Has Apple gone mad? Still, that black MacBook is a seriously good looking machine. So, TUAWers, what's the verdict? Have you got an extra two hundred bucks for Steve? Take our poll and check back tomorrow for the results.

Would you buy a black MacBook
	No way in heck
	I'm tempted
	I simply must have it!