What is the purpose of this, other than just to see if it can be done? I can't think of any software that would be worthwhile emulating that doesn't already have a Linux or Windows version (which is covered by Wine), other than xcode.
From my /Application folder (the italic ones are vital to my workflow): AirServer/AirParrot, Charles, Coda, CodeBox, Day One, Kaleidoscope, Keynote, Messages/FaceTime, MindNode Pro, Mou, Numbers, OmniFocus, OmniPlan, OmniGraffle Professional, Opacity, QuickSilver, SourceTree, TextMate, Transmit, VoodooPad, Xcode (and InterfaceBuilder and Instruments)
Most of them have Windows/Linux equivalents, but for me aren't nearly as good as Mac versions (your mileage certainly varies).
Codekit, Creative Suite, Evernote, Finder, Fontbook, iTunes, Reeder, Soulver, Sparrow, Quicktime. You could run photoshop.exe in Wine but there are bugs. There are alternatives to the other apps though, but they are not as polished.
Finder? Really? I would never imagine anyone would miss using Finder.
That's the bit of MacOS I found hardest to get used to. Looks good, but it's completely basic and featureless, and missed the versatility of KDE's Dolphin for quite a while until I found out about TotalFinder.
Despite TotalFinder being a great improvement over vanilla Finder, I still miss some of Dolphin's features such as: the ability to browse remote locations (FTP, SSH) and the ability to run a terminal window within dolphin for the folder you are viewing.
I run a Linux desktop and a Mac laptop. Alfred is the biggest reason I enjoy my OS X computer more. Huge thanks to anyone who can suggest a Linux alternative.
Another vote for kupfer here, I'm a huge fan of it, and install it instantly on receipt of a new linux workstation .. terrific tool, lots of nice plugins and very usable.
>What is the purpose of this, other than just to see if it can be done? I can't think of any software that would be worthwhile emulating that doesn't already have a Linux or Windows version (which is covered by Wine), other than xcode.
It's not about having a "Linux or Windows version", it's about how good OS X's version is. For some people, there are NO alternatives.
I would suggest to these people: get a Mac. If you're seriously fretting over having no alternatives, then you should be getting the Real Thing. Is it really worth trying to "stick to the man" or waste time trying to deal with all the inevitable bugs when running on a non-native platform?
If you seriously want to spend a couple hundred bucks for a netbook to run Linux and this OS X emulation layer, you're not going to get any serious work done for A) slowness and B) bugs. You'll have a cool toy, you can stick your tongue out at Apple, but you're not going to be designing, developing and compiling that Next Big Multimillion Dollar iOS Game.
Hell, even Mr. Linux himself (you know, that Torvalds dude) uses a MacBook Air. If he wants to run OS X, he can just dual boot.