I've been designing a tricky interface that requires a lot of buttons. The buttons are arranged in a 3x5 grid layout and can not be nested or tabbed, mainly due in homage to VOLTOR (We hail Thee!!!). They must be visible at all times. How to make this look pretty? It's been difficult.

After doing some mockups in Adobe Flex, I'm really beginning to like the look of links over buttons. Long time ago, as Software as a Service applications were just coming in to their own, they tried as much as possible to emulate the look and feel of traditional desktop applications. But in a reversal of philosophies, as they have come into their own with the widespread adoption of Ajax and other Web2.0 methodologies, their forward thinking designers have realized that links are elegant ways to connotate action.