Usually I’m Gung Ho for anything Apple does, but after shafting Mac developers from the Apple Design Awards, I felt that Apple had removed an important element from the community. Ars Technica apparently feels the same, and will host their own Ars Design Awards specifically for those developing for OS X. Apple, if you aren’t going to recognize great developers and designers for their work, somebody else will.

Anyone can vote for their favorite Mac applications by visiting Ars and taking a few minutes to share the love. From Ars:

We are giving you, our readers, the opportunity to nominate your favorite Mac OS X applications to receive an award in one of five categories: Best New App, Best User Experience, Most Innovative App, Best K-12 Education App, and Best Student-created App. We will accept nominations until Friday, May 21.

So hit up this link, vote, and get ready for the winners to be announced during WWDC this year.

Student Mac OS X Developers:

If you’re a student, leave a comment below with a link to your recent (2009) Mac OS X application. Being a student myself, I gotta represent all of you out there who are making some great things. We’ll compile a list here on MacStories so people have an easy reference sheet. Please submit your apps by Wednesday, May 12th so we can get the list out ASAP! We’ll also be perusing Twitter and asking around, so get in contact with @codyfink with suggestions and submissions!