i’ve noticed a design trend along “web 2.0” sites…
verbdate.com
37signals.com
rubyonrails.com
ning.com
edgeio.com
framework.zend.com
notice all the ‘choices’ in-your-face design. not that there’s anything wrong with that. just an observation. i think like anything in the world, people see good things and they emulate them. this is no different when people see good, simple, ui designs and emulate them as well.