Since the release of Mac OS X in 2001 (and even during the public betas before that), the Dock has been both touted (as a useful means of organizing your applications and document) and reviled (because of its limitations and limited customizability). Some developers have seen a market created by the Dock's limitations and come up with a number of alternatives. Some are more useful than others.
We'll first take a look at four mainstream programs (Dock-It, DragStrip, DragThing, and Drop Drawers) and then an odd step-brother to these packages named Butler. All of these packages attempt to improve upon or replace the dock in one way or another, so we here at Ars thought we'd give these options a good once-over. Let's start with the most basic and progress to the most advanced, shall we?
In addition to those five applications, we'll check out a couple of heavy hitters that do far more than replace the Dock: LaunchBar and QuickSilver.
If you have found yourself frustrated with the loss of Docklings, the lack of customizability in the Dock, or are just looking for something better, check out our survey of Dock alternatives.

http://arstechnica.com/reviews/apps/dock.ars