It's quite hard to phrase this question as the answer is very subjective and I don't know the right terminology to ask for what I want, but I will try my best.

I love linux and would love to use it full-time as my main OS but the one think I have a problem with is the look of it. In my opinion it looks like it was designed for a child and I like my computer to look stylish rather than dated (this is opinion obviously).

I like the look of OSX but there are certain things that I don't like, so no, I am not asking the age old question of "how do I make ubunutu look like OSX"...most of the attempts I have seen of this have been pretty poor when put up against the real thing so I just want to take certain things from it.

Things I'd like to take from OSX:

• Spotlight (I don't like the Unity dashboard-esque thingy)
• Expose
• Spaces
• Dock (at the bottom)
• Icons (apart from the apple one)
• Look of file manager - its more pleasant to navigate around the file system.
• Closing an application window doesn't actually quit the program, so when you next launch it - it is instantaneous.
• Global menu (at the top)

What are the latest Ubuntu alternatives to these?

When it comes to actually changing the look of Ubuntu what should I be looking at? I know the following exists:

• Shell theme
• Icons
• Fonts

...but is there anything else I need to look into to actually change the look? I hear the term "Window Manager" thrown around, but I don't actually know what that is. What are good sources for reviews/links to the latest and greatest customisation techniques?

Ubuntu now comes with Unity which I don't like very much. What are my alternatives? Should I look into Gnome3 or switch to classic desktop which is Gnome2 if I recall correctly?

I hope I haven't put too much in one question and that it makes sense.

Thanks.