I tend to agree with you overall (although I think Metro has some serious shortcomings right now, but this would take several paragraphs to expound on and is no

I tend to agree with you overall (although I think Metro has some serious shortcomings right now, but this would take several paragraphs to expound on and is not my goal with this comment), but I do disagree with one statement you make: "There are no gradients or design elements that would look dated 5 years from now." Using just pictures and fonts does not make your design timeproof— for example, the classical IBM ad definitely looks antiquated nowadays: http://www.designers-books.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/3F01544-450x590.jpg http://www.designers-books.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/3F... There is no such thing as a design which can always preserve its polish, because design always inscribes itself within a greater cultural trend which is inexorably a product of its era.