Not sure if we have any XBMC users here, just thought I would share a new theme i found called Xperience by teamblackbolt. It works very well and has many customization options, as you can probably tell its based on the Xbox 360 NXE dashboard!
I use XBMC but I really like the default theme, Project Mayhem III, mostly for the on-screen stuff during video playback that you can get, which allows me to forget most of the million buttons I have setup on my remote, which is what I miss most about using the xbox version really, the pad setup is brilliant.
Project Mayhem III / HD was my default theme since it was released, the default theme is now Confluence which im really not very keen on, I ended up finding Xperience and was hooked! I generally brighter colors so that probably helped a lot. Have to agree about the Xbox pad, it feels so much nicer to use than a remote, it might actually be supported in the Linux builds, i see some XML file for it, might have to see if its possible to get that or the wired 360 controller to work with it.
I use the wireless 360 pad to control XBMC on my PC in Win 7. Much better than a remote in my opinon. All you need is a little program called Xpadder and setting up the controller to your liking.