You're right John. Overuse of gimmicks is one of the worst things about the web.

But having a button change color when you are over it is fairly mild and unobtrusive, and it reinforces your position on the page.

The same mechanism can be used to enlarge an image if you like. These don't interfere with the use of the website and liven it up just a little.

I also hate things jumping around or websites that do things without being asked, but you don't want your websites too dull. All design is some sort of compromise and the designer has to be the one to draw the line.