Sometimes it seems like the Big Bang of UX started only after the good fellas from Apple came down from the sky and gave humankind the holy white piece of wonder (”look ma! no ugly windows!”). What still surprise me, is why a few years after, and god knows how many “i[whatever]” products, the software & web world is still afraid to go “i“.
It’s probably because most software/web development teams are still dominated by “lets-use-a-Word-interface-even-if-we-design-a-can-opener” kind of engineers.
Say what you want about using familiar interface, but if you really want to make an excellent product – be bold: get the most creative, original-thinker you can get, and give him absolute freedom. You don’t need to send your engineers home, but let the engineers be engineers (and nothing else). Try this once, and check the feedbacks. You can always go back to your striking and safe “Word-like” interface, if the water is too deep for you.
* Right now I’m just really proud I didn’t write “iPod” even once! 
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