Heh. GNUstep's look is UGLY. The fact that I was a developer on
NeXT machines 20 years ago and that I am the maintainer should add
some weight to my opinion.
I don't think so ... Software development expertise is no indicator of aesthetic judgment. I don't expect my 4th Dan aikido qualification to add weight to my judgment on macro economics for instance.
I have yet to see a system I like as much as NeXT step on a large screen, though I grant that GNUstep looks clunky on low res and small screens. That's just one personal preference.