Comment by gcanyon

I find your interpretation of the dock interesting, especially because I've never used the dock.

  - I don't use it to launch applications, I use launchpad for that.
  - I don't use it to open files in a given app, I right-click and use the contextual menu for that.
  - I don't use it to delete files, I use command-delete for that.
  - I don't use it to get to downloads, I use the Finder for that.
  - I don't use it to switch applications, I use command-tab for that.
  - I don't know what else it's good for, or what I do instead.

I say this as someone who has used Mac OS X since it launched: the dock is useless to me; I have it hidden, and if there were a way to permanently kill it, I absolutely would.